Phoenix
by PianoKeys913
Summary: The President is dead and Nikita has a target on her back. She makes a rash decision to leave all of her friends and the man she wanted to spend the rest of her life for their safety. Now, with the Shop, Amanda, and the United Stated government after her what will she do to survive? Takes place during season 4.
1. Gone Without a Trace

**NOTE: So I wanted to write something that would probably fit into season 4. This is my ideas of what could happen but of course I'm waiting to see what they come up with! Thank's for reading and please enjoy! **

Phoenix

Gone Without A Trace

Nikita drove towards the highway leading out of New Jersey and towards the South. She wanted to go somewhere where no one would know her. She needed a place to hide from the biggest threat that had ever been thrown in her path, the United States government.

She watched President Spencer shoot herself in the head and fall face first onto the shiny, polished table in the oval office, staining America's stability red with blood that was corrupted by the evil of the world. Nikita knew that there was something wrong with Spencer. The woman she had met a handful of times would not have just shot herself. _Would she? _

With the president deceased at the hands of a supposed "assassin," the American people were in chaos and disbelief that someone snatched their beloved leader right out of their fingers. And Nikita was the one that they wanted to blame for it. "_From now until the end of history every man, woman, and child will know your name, Booth, Oswald, Nikita..." _Amanda's words lingered in her mind.

She had contemplated turning herself in and as she crossed state borders, she still thought it over in her head. As soon as she walked into a police station or into the White House, they would pin her down, throw her in a hole, put her on trial, and send her to prison for the rest of her life. She knew the truth, they knew only what they wanted to believe. Then, she thought about what she would be giving up, her chance at the life she had always wanted.

Her heart was still hurting as she stared at her ring finger to check to see if her ring was actually gone. She watched as everyone, Michael, Alex, Ryan, Birkhoff, and Sonya, confidently agreed to help get her out of the huge fabricated tale that Amanda created, and she couldn't believe that they were all so willing to put their lives on the line for her. It is true, they were all previous members of Division, trained to deal with anything and everything, but things were different now. Before, they were fighting for the greater good of the people. They fought so that people would not have to suffer at the hands of someone with evil intentions. Now, they wanted to fight for _her_. She couldn't deal with that responsibility. The kind that would leave her feeling guilty forever if one of them got hurt or even killed in the process. The kind of guilt that Alex was feeling about Sean, the man she loved.

She thought about Michael. _Michael. _She felt guilty leaving him alone, but selfish for wanting to go back and be with him with a risk that he could end up being collateral damage in the end. Leaving him was one of the hardest decisions that she had ever made. Thinking about it made her tear up. She gripped the wheel hard and focused on the road.

5 miles until Virginia.

**Let me know what you all think! I am making this up as I go. Comments are much appreciated! Thanks for reading**


	2. Missing Promises

**NOTE: Back with more! Thanks for reading! **

Missing Promises

Michael lost track of time. He had no clue how long he had been leaning against the brick wall next to the window where he found the engagement ring he had given to Nikita. He thought long and hard about what kind of ring he wanted to get her and when to give it to her. He thought about when he was contained in China and the officer confiscated the ring. He went back inside and fought to get that ring. He had worked so hard deciding how he was going to propose and nothing was going to stop him from doing it his way, the right way. He never thought that he would find the ring back in his hands again.

The only question going through his head as he studied the little bit of light being reflected off the ring from the setting sun was "why?" He knew that Nikita had been worried and doubtful that their diligent team and most importantly friends would be able to help keep her from being contained by the United States government for the rest of her life. He just did not expect her to leave without saying anything or _I love you_...

"Damn it..." He gritted his teeth and slammed his fist against the wall. The sharp pain crept through his once robotic hand and made him tense up. He couldn't believe that his desperation to have back what he once took for granted would have ended up becoming the driving force behind Amanda's scheme to destroy the woman he loved and would have died for.

He felt sick to his stomach and wondered where Nikita was at that point in time. He was anxious and antsy to do something but what could he do? Division was gone. There were no more recruit rooms, computers, Ops, weapons or agents. If someone discovers that old farmhouse and manages to open the metal door leading to Divison they would only find crumbled remains of an underground facility but he knew there would be no evidence at that Division ever existed. That part of their lives was over and yet this was not what he had expected. He thought everyone would finally be able to live the lives that they always wanted. They were close. But Amanda got in the way and caused all of their dreams to come crashing down without warning. Despite all the odds being against them, Michael hadn't planned on giving up before and he wasn't planning on it now. It wasn't in his blood, and Nikita should have known better.

He put the ring deep in his pocket and brushed his hand over his pocket to make sure it was safely inside. Then, he walked back to face everyone and tell them what deep down he knew before he picked up the phone to call her.

They all already knew by the look on his face that it wasn't good news.

"She didn't answer." He looked at everyone's face turn from unsure to completely discouraged.

"Niki's gone?" Birkhoff asked in disbelief.

"Why would she leave?" asked Sonya.

"She doesn't want us involved. She wants to keep us safe," Alex said. She knew her friend.

"Put all the heat on herself...she could be turning herself in." Ryan said in his usual way, analyzing situations and making conclusions based on evidence.

"What?" Birkhoff scoffed. "No way , she wouldn't." He looked at all of them and could see in their eyes that they thought otherwise.

"If she does this she doesn't have to worry about anyone else getting hurt. She was going to sacrifice herself to keep Michael safe..."

"Nikita shouldn't be making decisions for me or any of you! We knew what we were signing up for! I can decide for myself what kind of risks that I want to take! We should be in this together!" Michael lost control and was yelling out all of his built up frustrations over Amanda, Nikita, and the current situation. He felt like he lost complete control and it scared him. Alex grabbed his arm and turned him toward her.

"Michael...she is only doing this because she loves you..." Alex said in her gentle tone.

"And I love her too I just wish that she would understand that we are in this together. She may want to save me but if something happens to her I..." He stopped and tightened his hands into fists. He couldn't let himself get that upset in front of everyone. He couldn't. He had to be strong, but it hurt so bad. They all stood silently.

"Look we don't know if she turned herself in. She could be laying low." Ryan said.

"But we don't know that for sure. Birkhoff can you track her?" Michael asked.

"Well, if we were back at Division I could have no problem, but I don't have Shadow Net here."

"How long will it take you to get Shadow Net up and running again?"

"I would need the proper equipment. When I was repairing it at Division I still had all the necessary pieces I just had to put it back together but right now I would have to start from scratch...it could take weeks...months." His voice lowered the more he went on. He knew that wasn't what Michael or any of them wanted to hear.

"Michael don't worry. We will find her," Alex kept trying to coax him.

Michael felt his frustration become unbearable at that point and he knew that he had to leave and clear his mind.

"I'll be back," he said abruptly and left the group standing there baffled and overwhelmed. They waited until they were sure he was gone to say anything.

"I'm sorry but if Niki is really laying low it will be near impossible to find her especially without Shadow Net. She knows what she is doing," Birkhoff admitted.

"I feel so bad for Michael. He feels completely useless," Sonya said.

"The most we can do right now is watch the news and see what they know about the assassination and hope that she does not create any breaking news tonight," Ryan said.

"Birkhoff and Sonya do you think you can work on getting Shadow Net up and running?" Alex asked.

"Yeah."

"Of course."

Alex and Ryan sat down in front of the TV.

"I wonder where he went," Ryan said.

"Somewhere to think. He has been through a lot. You can't blame him for feeling the way he does. Nikita did the same thing to me. She kept me from the truth and it ended up working against her. She promised she'd be honest from that point forward. I guess she hasn't yet made that promise to Michael."

"Or maybe they haven't yet made that promise to each other."


	3. Without You

**NOTE: Sorry for the late post! In this part I wanted to portray what I feel like Michael and Nikita would be feeling without having one another. They both have their own coping methods. I hope you all enjoy and thanks for all of the comments! More coming soon and thanks for reading. **

Without You

Michael put his hands in his coat pocket and briskly walked down the street. Everything blurred passed him as he passed pizza shops and convenience stores. The chilly night air hitting him in the face was the only thing that seemed real. Everything else seemed only like a dream he was waiting to wake up from.

He was pulled out of his trance by the sound of a car horn. He realized that he crossed the street in front of a car as they were turning a corner. The guy in the car stuck his head out of the window, yelled, then sped of down the street. Michael realized that he had walked at least five blocks from the apartment. He stopped and checked his surroundings. There wasn't much around but a bar on his right. He decided to stop in; he deserved a drink or two. He walked in and met the gaze of a couple of men drinking at the bar and the bartender, a middle aged man with a goatee and a ponytail. _This must be a locals bar._ Michael ignored the untiring gaze of the men and sat down at the end of the bar. The men sitting and the bartender exchanged gazes before the bartender walked over to Michael.

"Can I get ya somethin'?"

"Yeah a scotch." The bartender saw the impatience in Michael's eyes walked away to make his drink. Michael stared everywhere else but in the eyes of the men sitting on his left. The bartender put his drink down in front of him and walked back over to talk to the other men. Michael stared down at the drink and picked it up swirling the alcohol in the glass. He hadn't had a drink this strong in a long time. He was always so busy working he never had time to drink. He took the first sip and hid his reaction to the pungent taste.

He sat replaying the events of the day. He was dead for twenty minutes. He risked his life to save his life. It was seeing her face when he woke up and feeling her holding him that made him believe that it was all over, Division and all the work they did for the government. They were free and nothing could keep them apart...except for each other.

He thought about Nikita's surprised face when she saw him standing there in the construction area when she had planned to give up her life without even saying goodbye. _She was going to leave me alone like she is doing now._ He shook his thoughts out of his head. He didn't want to sit and dwell on it but it was eating him alive. The woman he planned to marry wouldn't even let him help pull her to safety or even comfort her. But could he blame her? When he lost his hand he acted the same way she did. He sat thinking about all of the things he wished he had done and the things he wished he could do now. He heard an obnoxious cough coming from the man on his left and turned to look at him again.

The man sitting next to him probably around forty-five but it looked like excessive smoking and drinking made him age. Michael guessed as he studied the guy's face.

"I've never seen you in here before," the man said with glassy red eyes in a questioning tone. Michael wasn't in the mood so he decided to keep it short and to the point.

"Just stopping through."

"Oh yeah...just checking out the area?" Michael had his hands placed on the counter and the man noticed the band on Michael's finger.

"Oh wife issues," the man concluded.

"Why don't you mind your own business?" Michael was already upset and stressed out. He didn't need a old, drunk man bothering him. The man let out a scoff and had a twisted smile on his face.

"I was just making small talk," He tried to sound innocent and it annoyed Michael even more.

"Small talk is useless." Michael took the last swig of his scotch and put money on the table to pay for his drink. He quickly got up and walked back where he came from. The man came up in front of him and blocked him from leaving.

"I wasn't done talking to you." The man was visibly intoxicated to the point of violent idiocy and Michael immediately got angry.

"Excuse me," He said. The man wouldn't budge. "I don't want to hurt you."

The man let out another ridiculous chuckle and stepped out of Michael's way. As Michael went to push the door open the man grabbed his shoulder. With Michael's fast reflexes he turned around and punched the man across the face. The man stumbled backwards and held the side of his face in astonishment; his nose was bleeding.

"You-you broke my nose!"

Without any words Michael left the bar and walked back in the direction of the apartment. _I go out to be by myself and I can't even relax in peace...at least I got to punch someone_. He thought about what he had said to Alec when they paid a visit to Kang and he had meant it.

When he got back to the apartment he was even more annoyed and frustrated than when he left. They all turned their attention to him when they saw him walk in but no one knew what to say to him. He decided to break the silence himself and tell them that he was off to bed. Luckily the apartment had at least four rooms because a bunch of Birkhoffs hacker buddies used to room together. He chose the first one he saw and crashed on the twin sized bed, alone. He had too long of a day.

* * *

Nikita drove through Virginia until she found a secluded motel off the highway. She needed a place to rest after all the day's events. However, she now had to be extra cautious. Even though the picture they had of her was grainy and only a side profile, she wasn't sure if someone would be able to pin her to it. She knew she had to have a change of appearance but before doing that she needed a good night's sleep.

"One room please," she said to the guy behind the counter overly consumed in a late night show.

He glanced up uncaringly until he caught a glimpse of her face and then he stood up. He looked at her with a lopsided smile and crooked teeth.

"Let me check and see what we have." He pulled out a large book and then grabbed a key from underneath the counter. "How long are you staying?"

"I'll leave sometime in the morning."

"10 o 'clock."

"Fine." He looked at her again.

"Name?" She sat there staring at him lost in her own thoughts. "You have a name?"

"Oh...Lisa Daniels." He looked up at her face again. She didn't look like a Lisa. "Okay Lisa, that'll be thirty dollars." She placed the money on the counter. He scrapped it up with one hand and then slowly gave her the key with his other hand. "You're not from around here."

"You get a lot of our of town people don't you?" She asked but wasn't looking for an answer. She walked up the stairs on her immediate right. Room 207. She walked down the hallway reading the room numbers. She found her room close to the end of the hall and opened the door. She had stayed in her share of hole in the wall motels to five star hotels in France. This was okay. It had queen sized bed and that was all that mattered at that point. She kicked off her shoes, removed her jacket, and flopped down on the bed. She laid there on top of the sheets and begun to feel the small aches throughout her body. She was tired and had dealt with an incredible amount of stress. Yet, what she wanted most she couldn't have. When she had a rough day, Michael would make sure to comfort her and wrap his arms around her. Then, she felt safe again. Now, she just felt vulnerable and alone.

She began to drift off to sleep until she was awoken by yelling. She listened closely and could hear that it was coming from the next room over. A man and a woman. It seemed like the man was doing most of the yelling. She listened closely and was able to make out some of the words.

"He is my co-worker. That's all."

_Thinks she's cheating_. Nikita closed her eyes again and tried to ignore it. She's gone to sleep with bigger issues on her mind. Then, she heard a loud slap and what sounded like someone stumbling backwards. It was the woman. She had let out a scream so loud at the unexpected blow to the face. Nikita immediately shot up and ran to their door. She knocked hard. Everything stopped. It was quiet. He must have been coming up with a cover story. When the door opened she saw a man with dark shaggy hair, shirtless and impatient. She looked past him and saw a woman sitting on the edge of the bed with tears and fear in her eyes. She tried to compose herself.

"What?" The man said.

"You're very noisy. I'm in the room right next to you. I can hear everything and I think you should stop whatever it is you think you have a right to do to her."

"Excuse me?"

"I'm going to call the police if I hear something else." Nikita warned him looking him directly in the eyes. She hated these kind of men. She wanted to leave law enforcement out of it and deal with him herself, but she was trying to keep a low profile. The man looked at her in bewilderment and then furrowed his eyebrows and scoffed.

"Why don't you mind you damn business and go back to where you belong. You don't know who I am."

"And i'd rather not find out and, by the way, you don't know who I am either." She looked passed him again and looked at the woman.

"Come on I'm getting you out of here." The woman shook her head frantically and was about to reject the help until the man did it for her.

"You are not going anywhere get up and ill..." He stopped realizing that Nikita was still standing there. He was about to shut door in her face until she barged into the room and knelt down in front of the woman.

"Come with me, please? I can get you to safety."

"Just stop. Please." The woman pleaded with streams of tears running down her face.

"Now who is going to get the cops called on them? Get the hell out of this room." He walked up to Nikita and put his hand on her shoulder, but that was a bad idea. She grabbed his hand and broke one of his fingers than kicked him towards the window of the room where he stumbled backwards and fell. Nikita grabbed the girls hand.

"Let's go." The girl pulled away. Nikita looked back and watched her grab a purse and then follow behind. Nikita smiled at her and left the room. She closed the door and then went into her room to grab her jacket and then she closed the door and stuck the key in the outside lock. She hadn't planned on coming back. She nodded her head towards the stairs and the girl followed her out.

They walked right passed the guy behind the counter and then got into Nikita's car. Nikita pulled off and drove for a couple of minutes until she spoke to the girl. She noticed how calm the girl was. A woman who is experiencing abuse Nikita expected would be scared, anxious or even angry. Nikita glanced over at her. She noticed that the side of the girls face was red.

"What's your name?"

"Alexis."

"I'm Nikita." The girl nodded.

"Are you from around here?"

"I grew up here."

Nikita nodded.

"Are you okay with going to the police?" The girl paused for a second.

"It really doesn't matter." Nikita was surprised at how calm and uncaring the girl seemed about everything.

"Don't you want to get away from him?"

"It doesn't matter. He finds me every time."

"He stalks you?"

"Well, he knows where I live and where my parents and friends live. It makes it hard to get away so...I just stay." Nikita couldn't understand the simplicity in Alexis's answer. Nikita never had a mentality like that. She always fought when she thought something was wrong. Always.

"You know you don't have to live like this. No one should have to deal with that."

"Well, what can I do?"

"You could move away."

"Yeah, just run and what if he comes to find me again?"

"You can get him put in jail." Alexis looked down at her hand and touched the ring on her finger. Nikita noticed the ring and realized what it was about. She still loved him.

"You know I always pictured us married with kids. I never thought it would come to this."

"How long have you been together."

"Five years. But I've known him my whole life. We grew up in the same neighborhood. Now, after all of these years we are engaged but our relationship hasn't gotten worse."

"What happened?"

"He lost his job. He was a mechanic trying to save up money to open his own shop. When he lost his job he went looking again but couldn't find anything. We ended up having to go into his savings to keep our place. Eventually, it all ran out and now we don't even have a place to live. He just does odd jobs to bring in enough money for us to hop around from place to place until he can find something steady."

"Your parents live here right? Can't you stay with them?"

"My parents don't like Kevin. Even since they found out what he was doing to me. They tried to help me but when I went back to him...they told me not to come back home." Nikita pulled over on the side of the road and looked at Alexis.

"Look for what it is worth I think you should go to the police. I know that you love him, but he shouldn't be treating you that way."

"And then what am I going to do?"

"live your own life the way you want to and find someone that loves you."

"I thought that was Kevin."

"Maybe it was at some point, but I think you two need time a part. You'll never be happy with him or yourself if you stay the way you are right now." Alexis nodded. She looked up at Nikita with questioning eyes.

"You've done so much for me already. Why?"

"I understand what it is like to be stuck in a situation that you can't escape from." Alexis looked like she wasn't completely satisfied with that answer, but she accepted it. "And what I've learned is that someone can help you, but you have to want it yourself, a better life. Do you want to leave him for good this time?"

Alexis looked down at her ring in serious contemplation. Nikita waited and tried to see the situation from her eyes. It was a tough situation, but Nikita wanted her to make the right decision.

"I'll leave. I'll go to the police."

Nikita nodded and tried to smile at her.

"It'll be for the better," she said. Alexis tried to smile back, but Nikita could see the pain in her eyes. She drove Alexis to the police station and then waited for her to come back out.

"How do you feel?"

"Better. I called my father. He is on his way here to get me."

"I knew they'd be willing to help you. I'm glad."

"Thank you for everything Nikita. There's not many people like you out there." Alexis closed the door and went back into the station. Nikita smiled and then pulled out of the parking lot.

She found another motel and finally had the chance to crash on the bed. She stared at the ceiling thinking about how she ended up pulling herself into someone else's problems like she's always done. She can never stand by and let someone get hurt. Not with Sammy when he was shot by Detective Deros when he and Edmonds came after Carla, not when Alex would have been killed a long with her father in that fire, and not when Michael was going to risk his life to kill Kasim. It wasn't in her. But she also thought that she was done with "missions." There always another mission. But was that the kind of life that she wanted? Alexis had a "normal" life and yet she couldn't be with the person that she loved. Alexis wasn't much older than Nikita was around the time she became a Division agent and become closer to Michael. It hurt her to watch Alexis loose the person she loved. Nikita had been through the same thing with Daniel, but in Alexis' case the person she loved was the one who hurt her.

Nikita and Michael had the farthest thing from normal, yet they could've worked it out. _We could have._ But she let him go. She wanted him to be safe. Too many people had already gotten hurt because of Amanda's obsessive desire to torture Nikita. But now she was wondering if letting Michael go was worth it. Alexis had a reason to let Kevin go, he was hurting her. Michael wasn't hurting her. Michael didn't do anything wrong to her and yet she still let him go.

Nikita and Michael had the farthest thing from normal, yet they could've worked it out. _We could have._ But she let him go. She wanted him to be safe. Too many people had already gotten hurt because of Amanda's obsessive desire to torture her. But now she was wondering if letting Michael go was worth it.

There was a time when Nikita was trying to find out who all of the members of Oversight was. She was making risky decisions and wanted to leave Michael out of it. She remembered that the only way she could keep him from following her was by putting something in his drink. Looking back on it now, maybe she was wrong. She made the decision for him that he would not get involved. She wanted him safe, but he had gotten so angry at her. He told her that night that "if you ever pulled something like that again, we're through." Those words scared her. Yet, she was doing it again, so she knew what she had to do. She felt like she couldn't be what he needed. Especially at this point with the chances of her being incarcerated for the rest of her life. A knot in her throat and she felt like crying again, but she was tired of crying. She turned on her side and tried to fall asleep.


	4. The Hunt

**NOTE: I wanted to post this early since it took me so long to post last time. This is a little short but there is more coming. **

**Thanks everyone for reading and comments are appreciated! Let me know what you all think! **

The Hunt

"Any leads on Nikita's whereabouts yet?" Amanda asked her newly hired computer analyst and professional hacker Eric. He was he best she could find but he was no where near Birkhoff's level and she hated to admit it.

"No. All I have is footage of her escaping the White House through a backway passage underground. She gets into a car then drives off. I'm working on finding out where she went after." The young blonde reported.

"I know exactly where she went! I want to know where she is now." The young man turned to her.

"Who is this Nikita woman anyway?" Amanda gave him a glare and turned his swivel chair so that he was facing the screen again.

"I do not pay you to ask questions. I pay you to work and get me results. Until you do that do not say anything." Amanda walked away and went into what she made into her office. She turned on the news and briefly checked to see if there was anything new. The presidents funeral. She turned off the news and turned on the camera watching over the real President Spencer. Spencer was slouched over in a corner of the cell they put her in. It was as if she were a zoo animal forced to live in a cage.

"Hungry?" Amanda asked. Spencer looked up and then struggled to get onto her feet.

"What are you trying to do? What do you want with me if not to kill me or hold me for ransom?"

"Oh we are not going for a dramatic movie here President Spencer or should I call you Kathleen now. Can I call you Kathleen?" Spencer glared which only amused Amanda. :"We have-or I have a better plan for you. But don't worry you will help me get what I want. It's all a matter of time."

"Vice president Victor Allen will do everything in his power to stop you and if he finds out I'm alive he will make sure you all get what you deserve for scaring and terrorizing the American people," Spencer said clearly, word for word with the utmost confidence.

Amanda just laughed.

"Victor already knows you're alive."

She watched as the face of the woman who showed no fear twisted into confusion and shock.

"What?"

"I'll tell them to bring you food. You're welcome," Amanda said and turned off the camera. She smiled that cold hearted smile and stared at the picture of Nikita on her computer screen.

"Where are you. I'm not finished with you yet." She decided to do some searching herself. She tried to trace the signal of the com she put on Nikita before she sent her on her "final mission." It was dead. _Figures. _Nikita was too smart to be so careless. She decided to just contact Division directly. _I've done it before. Hacking into Division's system is nearly impossible unless you know how._ She followed the same steps she had done before to get in contact with those she once had power over. She was sure she would see their surprised, angry faces as she looked at them, but she wasn't able to get through this time. She tried it again and failed. Confused she tried to get into Division's surveillance system that looked over the outer perimeter of the area from a satellite. She always had to concentrate when she did these things. It wasn't hard for her, but she was no Birkhoff. Sometimes when she was in charge of Division after the fall of Percy she would watch Birkhoff's fast fingers type away and she would memorize it. She knew it would come to good use one of these days. She tapped into the satellite and there it was, Division's barn. It looked barren as usual, but why couldn't she get into its system?

She had sent the Dirty Thirty after them. Could they have all died? She knew better. No one from the Dirty Thirty contacted her to tell her the job was done.

She looked through past footage of saw the rogue agents storm the barn. She fast forwarded and saw that no one came out until later on. None of the dirty 30s exited the barn only Alex, Fletcher, Birkhoff, Sonya, Michael, and Nikita. She saw Ryan stand in front of Nikita and hand her something. She paused and zoomed in. It looked like a small black box. She watched Nikita press something inside the box and then she realized what happened. They blew up Division. It was gone. She sat there in disbelief as she watched them get into car and drive off. All looked calm and quiet but in reality there was pure chaos underground. The whole place was crumbling. Everything that she and Percy worked hard to create was destroyed by computer analysts, a fallen heiress, an once amateur researcher, a broken soldier, and an ex addict. She couldn't believe it was officially gone. She had plans to fix it and make it even bigger than before. She wanted to have something that she could control because she had never had that before. She closed down her computer and suddenly got angry. They had no right to take away something she worked hard to build. Not having Division was a little annoyance in her plan, but it was alright because her plan could still work. She'd just have to demand more from her supposed superiors. That's exactly what she would do.


	5. Working with Nothing

**NOTE: Back with more! This chapter is a lot longer than the rest. Thanks to everyone who is reading and leaving me comments. If you can, please comment! I like getting feedback on my work and if you have any suggestions let me know. Enjoy! **

Working with Nothing

The next morning Michael walked out into the common area and saw Birkhoff and Sonya passed out at the computer desk. _They must've been up all night working on Shadow Net. _He touched each of them on the shoulder and they jumped out of their sleep. Birkhoff squinted up at him.

"What time is it?"

"7 am," Michael told him. Birkhoff looked over at Sonya.

"We must have passed out from working on Shadow Net all night."

"How's it going?"

"We did a lot last night," Sonya finally chimed in. "We have a pretty functional system at this point. With a little more work we should be able to find Nikita."

"Well, before I do anything I need a shower, breakfast, and an energy drink because I am exhausted."

"I'll go grab breakfast for everyone," Michael told them.

They all turned when they heard foot steps coming down the stairs. Alex came downstairs fully clothed in a pencil skirt and a suit jacket with stud earrings and her hair down and curled at the ends. She was Alexandra Udinov today.

"What's with the getup? You know we aren't at Division anymore right?" Birkhoff said sarcastically.

"I have a meeting with Maryam Hasan. We are going to discuss my role in helping stop human trafficking. I have some ideas that I want to share with her already."

"Good. The faster you can get in there and start taking down the human trafficking sites, the faster we can get to the Shop."

"Take down the traffickers, weaken the Shop. Sounds good to me. With the resources you'll have access to you may be able to look at the locations on our map of the Shop facilities." Birkhoff said.

"Just don't mention the Shop. We want to keep this under wraps until we know more about them." Michael said.

"Got it," Alex nodded. They heard Ryan come down the stairs and he was fully dressed in a suit as well.

"And where are you going?" Birkhoff asked.

"I'm meeting with President Allen," Ryan told them while fixing his suit jacket.

"Allen? Why?" Michael asked.

"I wanted to go and give my condolences for President Spencer and then offer my services if he needs them. I'm going to tell him that I worked closely with President Spencer and Danforth."

"That sounds great Ryan, but how is that going to help?" Michael asked.

"Yeah you can't exactly walk up to President Allen and tell him that you are the former overseer of a secret agency known as Division," Alex said.

"Yeah we lost our pardons when we lost Spencer. No one that knows about Division is left. Spencer and Danforth are both dead." Sonya added.

"I'm not looking to get us back our pardons. Not just yet. Or telling the President about Division. I want to offer help in the search for Nikita."

"What?" Michael scoffed.

"They know me as a researcher mostly interested in 'conspiracies' i.e. Division. If I can convince him that I can help in the search it will give me access to government documents and I can find out what they know or think they know about Nikita. Of course I'm not going to go in there giving them actual information."

"Alright I guess that could be useful," Michael said.

"Good thing is Nikita didn't turn herself in yesterday as we had thought," Ryan said. "So if she is in hiding we'll just have to find her once Shadow Net is up and running. Until then we can start trying to figure out what Amanda's next move may be. We know she is working with the Shop, but we do not know why they wanted President Spencer dead. We can start thinking about that." Ryan said still acting as if he was leading the group at Division.

"Alright I'll stay here and work on that. You two go take care of business. Michael said. Ryan nodded and headed out. Alex followed behind. Michael touched the back of her arm as she passed him.

"Be careful," he said to her. He was always protective over Alex. He had been like that with her when she was a recruit even before he found out about her connection to Nikita. He never really knew why, but it may have been because she reminded him so much of Nikita when she was a recruit. She had potential to be someone great and she had a big heart like Nikita. Especially with Nikita being gone, he felt the need to watch over Alex. She would want him to. Alex hadn't showed any more remorse over Sean after she came out of Amanda's mind control, but he knew that she was still suffering inside. She just wouldn't show it. He almost wanted to talk to her about it, but he knew it would just open up another can of worms.

She looked at him with her big green eyes, nodded, then left.

Michael went out and got breakfast and then went searching through the house for anything that might be helpful to them. He wanted to start thinking about everything that had happened and how he could link it all together to find out what Amanda was planning. He didn't find anything useful in the rooms so he went back down stairs where all the computer equipment was laying around. He stopped when he came across a white board near the front door. It had names of computer equipment scribbled on it and the amounts they needed. Michael picked it up and brought it into Birkhoff and Sonya's miniature Ops. They watched him set it up against the side of the wall and try and wipe the old marker off of it.

"What are you doing dude?"

"Getting ready to map out Amanda's plan. You have a napkin or something?" Sonya handed him one of the napkins that was in the bag with their food. Michael was able to get the rest of the marker off.

"There..." He realized it would be hard to write with the board on the floor so he looked elsewhere. He noticed a small bookshelf filled with video games and he place it on top of there.

"Now we can start."

"Michael...do you want to take the day off?" Birkhoff asked.

"Why would I do that?"

"You've been through a lot these past couple of days. You look exhausted and did you drink last night?"

Michael realized that a good shower may do the trick.

"I'll go take a shower, but I'm not taking the day off. Nikita is still out there alone. I need to find her."

"Okay but don't over do it." Birkhoff said. Michael left the room to take a shower. Birkhoff turned to Sonya who by the look on her face was thinking the same thing.

"He is going to burn himself out," Sonya said.

"I know. He does it every time and I try to tell him to relax every time. He's not going to stop until he finds her."

"I think we can track Nikita now. I was just working on it..." Birkhoff stopped her and looked to see of Michael was there.

"Let's just wait a while. Niki is smart. She knows what she is doing. I'm sure that she doesn't want us coming after her right now," he said quietly then took a swig of his energy drink. Sonya nodded and continued typing away on the computer.

* * *

WASHINGTON, D.C. United Nations

Ryan dropped Alex off at the UN to meet with Maryam Hassan.

"I'm really missing our access to vehicles in Division. I think I may have to buy us another car." Alex said to Ryan.

"Yeah we may need another one. I'll come to pick you up just send me a message."

"Alright. Good luck."

"You too." Alex opened the door to get out but Ryan called her again. "Hey, Alex. You think Nikita is alright?"

"I think she's safe. I don't think she wants us to worry. I think she just wants us to watch out for one another." Ryan smiled and nodded.

Alex got out of the car and went to meet Myram Hasan. She fixed her clothing and her hair. She didn't want to admit it to herself but she was nervous. She knew that she was going to finally have some power of her own. She was going to start making a difference. Although she did all of those missions for Division, she never felt like she was doing something important for someone else. This time she really knew that she would make a difference for girls like her. She took a deep breath and walked into the room she was told to meet Maryam in. The door was open and she saw Maryam on the phone. She knocked on the door quietly. Maryam looked up and her face lit up with a smile.

"One second" she said inaudibly. Alex nodded and stood in the doorway with her hands folded. Maryam hurried to get off of the phone. She stood up and slowly pulled away from her desk as she told the person on the other end that it was great talking to them. She hung up and then walked up to Alex with her hands out. She took Alex's hands into hers with a big smile.

"Alexandra Udinov. I'm so happy that you are here. I thought you weren't interested in the position and that I should have tried harder to get your interest in the organization," she laughed. "I told the team that you were coming today. They are all so excited to work with you. You are going to be a great asset to our team." Alex felt a little overwhelmed. She let out a nervous laugh and put her hair behind her ear.

"Thank you Ms. Hasan I'm so grateful that you offered me this position. I never saw myself doing something like this, and I really admire you for it. You helped me realize that this is something I would like to do." Myram smiled at her and lead her out of the office.

"I'm happy I could do that for you. Well, lets get you started." She led her to a meeting room full of people sitting at a large table. Alex and Maryam stood in front of the people and Maryam introduced Alex to everyone.

"Thank you for letting me be apart of your team. I'm excited to work with all of you and I hope to really make an impact in the effort to help save these young girls women stuck in human trafficking. You might know that I was once caught in nightmare of sex trafficking and it took me a years to get out. It was a tough journey but I made it. I want to help other girls do the same."

"Great. We look forward to it. Please." Myram started clapping and everyone began clapping as well. Alex felt great but it almost made her uncomfortable getting so much praise. They saw her as Alexandra Udinov previous heiress to the Zetrov throne forced into sex trafficking but a survivor now wealthy with her rightfully deserved inheritance. Maybe that was true on the surface but that was only the very thin top layer. They didn't know the _real_ Alex. The one who got addicted to drugs and became suicidal who nearly died until she met a woman who saved her life. The girl who did not know until later that the woman who saved her life killed her father and the mother who she thought was dead was actually having an affair with the man who ordered for her father to be killed. They had no clue. But in a way she saw it as beneficial. They saw her as someone important and influential. She wanted to be someone like that but in a way that she wanted, not a way people expected her to be. And this was her chance. She was going to take advantage of that.

After the meeting, they broke off into groups. Alex was put into a group with Maryam and her closest advisors. Alex thought it was a good time to explain her ideas.

"I was thinking, you usually try an find each individual girl. For instance, if you are told that a girl is missing in India you work to find that girl." They nodded. "Well what if we go after the people controlling that girl. They usually have houses full of girls. If you rescue that one girl they can find another. I think we could really make a change by attacking the system."

"Well that would be ideal Ms. Udinov but we don't have the resources for that."

"I may be able to get us the resources for it."

"We wouldn't even know where to start looking."

"I have an idea."

* * *

OVAL OFFICE

Ryan greeted President Allen with a handshake.

"Sir, it is a pleasure to meet with you."

"You as well Fletcher. I have seen you working with President Spencer before. You seemed to have a big influence."

"Thank you-"

"Sometimes at her displeasure."

Ryan paused unsure what to say.

"But influential none the less"

"Sir. I worked closely with President Spencer and I wanted to come by and show my condolences. It is truly a tragedy. She was a great leader of this country, but the American people are in good hands now as well."

"Thank you Mr. Fletcher and thank you for coming by."

"Of course and Mr. President...I actually wanted to talk to you about the assassination." President Allen sat there waiting for him to speak. "You may know I worked as an analyst in the CIA. I would really like to offer my services in the effort to find the person who committed this terrible act."

"You mean you want to work the case? In the CIA?" Allen said almost in disbelief.

"I-yes sir I do. I really want to help. I was close to President Spencer." Ryan said to him. Allen stood in deep thought and nodded.

"I guess we can use as much help as we need." Allen said. Ryan was hopeful that the President would say yes.

"I have been keeping in contact with the CIA. I'll talk to them and see what they need. I'll get back to you Mr. Fletcher."

"Great, thank you sir."

"Thank you Mr. Fletcher," Allen shook Fletcher's hand.

"It was a pleasure, sir." Ryan left the White House. He wasn't sure what to think of his meeting with the President. It hadn't gone the way he expected. He got to his car and checked his messages. Alex was finished her meeting as well. He went to pick her up.

* * *

President Allen watched Ryan leave the room. He waited a few seconds before picking up his personal cell phone to make a call. He sat back in his chair and waited for an answer.

"Victor. Everything running as planned?" Amanda said.

"Ryan Fletcher stopped by today. He wanted to give his condolences for Spencer...and then he asked to help in the search to find the president's assassin," his voice lowered although no one else was in the room with him. Amanda laughed.

"And what did you tell him?"

"I just made him think that I would consider it but...why would he come here and offer to find her? Weren't they in Division together?"

"He is trying to get access to government information about the assassination. He is trying to figure it out. Just keep leading him on. He's smart. He'll figure out that he isn't needed. Just keep to the plan Victor. Everything will work out in our favor. But don't forget that we need to find Nikita."

"Of course."


	6. Considering the Alternative

**NOTE: Here is a little more. I'm so far satisfied with how this story is going. I realize though that I haven't really done any fight scenes and of course there are plenty of those in the show so I'm hoping to have one in here soon. Thanks for reading! **

Considering the Alternative

_ Nikita woke up with a gasp. She looked around and saw that she was in a prison cell. It was small, damp, and cold. A prison guard opened her door and stared at her with a frown._

_ "Why am I here?"_

_ "What do you mean 'why am I here?' You killed the President of the United States. Or did you forget that quickly? Get up!" The man turned her around and put handcuffs on her before pushing her out of the cell. She walked by each cell and looked in. She couldn't believe what she saw._

_ "Nikita!" She heard her name. It was Ryan._

_ "Ryan! What are you doing here?"_

_ "Don't worry. We are still going to get our pardons. Everything will be alright." She walked passed Ryan and saw Sonya, Birkhoff, then Alex._

_ "Alex..." She looked as if she had been doing drugs. "Alex..." Then, she saw Michael sitting in his cell against the wall._

_ "Michael!" She tried to run towards his cell but the guard grabbed her harder. _

_ "It's too late Nikita." Michael said as she passed by. She was pushed into another room and the door locked behind her. She turned and saw two other men that worked to strap her down to a bed. Then, she saw what she feared the most, Amanda. _

_ "What did you do?" Nikita yelled. _

_ "I told you I would make you suffer," Amanda said with her crooked smile._

_ "We are going to stop you!" Amanda laughed._

_ "Still won't give up being a vigilante. Don't worry it'll all be over soon." She picked up something off her metal table full of various gadgets and surgical instruments. She stuck a needle in Nikita's arm and watched as she passed out on the table. _

Nikita sat up in bed sweating and gasping for air. She looked around and pushed her hair out of her face. She was in the same plain motel room in the same bed with the same clothes on. She closed her eyes and laid back down on the bed realizing that she was laying in a pool of sweat.

She forced herself to get out of bed and into the small bathroom to clean herself up.

She took a quick shower and tried to avoid the mirror when she stood at the sink.

She couldn't help but look up. She had come such a long way. She had been a drug addict. She had been a killer. She had been on death row. She had loved and lost. She had been through so much, and yet she still clung on to this idea of _life_. She didn't know where to get it from or how to start it, but she knew she wasn't going to be alone. She had Michael. Michael had experienced life before, and she knew that he wanted it just as bad as she did. At the same time, life seemed all too good to be true for her. She should've known that Amanda would keep her from discovering it.

_"The world is about to see you for who you really are Nikita and there is nothing you can do about it,"_ Amanda had said as she gave Nikita the most the unbearable ultimatum.

_Maybe I should turn myself in..._

Nikita thought about it. If she turned herself in should could explain what really happened, the President committed suicide. _Yes, she had shot herself. Her fingerprints are on the gun but...damn it...mine are too_. She remembered how she had touched the gun and even placed it on President Spencer's desk. _They wouldn't listen to my story at all. I'd be lucky if I got a fair trial. _She thought about Amanda's ability to expose Division. There was no longer a black box or members of Oversight to back up her claims. However, there were people out there like Nikita and Michael that were pronounced legally dead and yet they were all alive. There were even soldiers who came into Division when it was still in existence. If she really wanted to expose the agency she could and that would mean exposing not only Nikita, but everyone else who ever was apart of Division.

Nikita realized that turning herself in may not be the easy option. It would get her no where. She would never get out and it would all be over. She couldn't give up on her future with Michael that easily. It was worth fighting for.

She got dressed and left the motel. She found a mall and decided to try and find some clothes that she liked. Even though she was a trained assassin that could take out a man twice her size, she had no clue where to start when it came to regular recreational activities. She had gotten better at it once she became a Division agent. She remembered the first time she went shopping. It was so obvious that she did not know what to look for that a store associate helped her shop for a new wardrobe. It had been a while since she went shopping, but she tried to enjoy herself. She changed into her new clothes after she bought them and then headed to the salon. It was time for a new hair cut. She figured that the only things they had to go off of in finding her was her slender figure and her long, dark brown, straight hair. She decided to cut it and dye it a light brown.

When she left the salon, she felt like a new woman. She sat down in the food court and ate lunch. She tried to go over ideas in her head on how to find Amanda. _Why did the Shop want President Spencer dead? What were they planning to do now? And what does Amanda want with me now? _

She didn't have Birkhoff anymore to do some snooping around on Shadow Net. She went over her conversation with Amanda in the tunnel. She said nothing that gave away any information about her plans. Then, it hit her. Owen. He was the last person to really have close contact with Amanda before she disappeared.

_ I've got to fine Owe...Sam. _He wasn't Owen anymore. Owen was lost. Another person ruined by Amanda's games. He was always Sam, so he says. Nikita always felt that he really had been Owen all along and Amanda made him into Sam. Sam stayed inside Owen until Amanda hit the switch. He told everyone that he didn't want to have anything to do with them after the G-20, but Nikita never gave up on her friends. Owen had done so much for her. She wasn't going to give up on him, not now.

She had a plan. The problem was trying to figure out how to implement it. She didn't know where Sam could be. In fact, she had no idea where Sam would go, but she had an idea of where _Owen _would go.

She got into her car and drove to the last place that became home to Owen during his duties as a Guardian, the only place that he had any connection to. The apartment he lived in when he met Emily.

**I wanted to bring back Owen! I hope they put him in season 4.**


	7. Owen Versus Sam

**NOTE: Hey everyone! Sorry for the delay I've been super busy. I'm still trying to develop the story and decide what I want to do next. I have more planned out and some written so I'm hoping to post the next chapter soon. Kiara you'll see more of the gang in the next chapter and I have ideas of how Michael and Nikita will see one another again =) Thanks for all of your reviews. Hope you guys like what I did with Nikita and Owen/Sam. Let me know what you think! Thanks for reading! **

Owen Versus Sam

Owen went back to his old apartment. He couldn't decide if he wanted to return and was living in hotels for a while. He figured that since he was seemingly done with Division, he should settle into his own place.

He knew that his old place would be perfect; it was the only place that ever felt like home to him. He walked into the leasing office and saw Larry, his old landlord. Larry's eyes immediately grew wide as soon as he saw Owen. He stood up and came around the desk to greet him.

"Owen! I can't believe you are back again," Larry said with a handshake. "I thought I'd never see you again. You just disappeared after...after Emily died." Larry's smile went away once he remembered what happened.

"I just needed time away. Clear my head. It was a lot to take in."

"Absolutely."

"Larry, I was actually wondering if you had something open. I would really like to move back in here. I liked living here a lot."

"Of course! I'd love to have you back! Let me see what I have..." Larry looked on his computer squinting through his glasses. He looked back up at Owen.

"I have a place open on the bottom floor end of the hall..."

"I'll take it." Larry smiled and began typing on the computer.

"Is someone living in Emily's place now?" Larry stopped and looked at Owen.

"After what happened I had the place cleaned out and I didn't try to lease it to anyone for months. But even after that, no one would take it. They heard about what happened to Emily and they didn't want it." He paused. "They never even found her killer," he said softly. He shook his head and began typing again.

"I'll take Emily's place." Larry looked at Owen from above his glasses.

"Are you sure you want to live there, Owen?"

"It's all that's left of her," he said.

"Hold on for just a second."

Larry went into a back room and came out in a couple of minutes. He was holding a medium sized box with glass butterflies jutting out of the top.

"This is everything left of Emily's. I was keeping it for family members that wanted to come by and take her things. I waited, longer than I really had to for her family to come but...no one came," Larry said. Owen felt a knot in his throat and swallowed it down.

"I want you to take this." Larry said as he handed Owen the box.

"Thank you."

Larry finished the paperwork and then handed Owen the keys to Emily's place. It was his now. He was glad no one had been living there. He slowly opened the door wondering what it would feel like to be back in the place where he had so many memories.

It was empty.

No furniture, no lingering scent of Emily's favorite candles, no colorful butterflies in the window. Owen put the box down and stood there looking around. There was a lot of memories in that place. He saw her face everywhere he looked.

"Just me and you Emily..." He whispered. He decided to go and buy some essentials just to get him by until he could by new furniture to make the place feel like home again.

* * *

Nikita reached Owen's apartment the next day. She remembered the glass butterflies being in the window before, but now they were gone. She was able to walk into the building. She tried to open the door to Emily's old apartment, but it was locked. She knocked but no one answered. She pulled a bobby pin out of her hair and was able to unlock the door. Classic trick. She was happy that she had decided to wear an up-do. She opened the door and saw nothing there but a sleeping bag on the floor by an open box and left over wrappers and plastic bowls from food. She knelt over the box and looked inside. She saw the butterflies and picked one up. She felt Owen's pain having lost someone to Division before. Nikita had wondered whether or not it was selfish for Division agents to fall in love with living normal lives. But how much can a person control when it comes to love?

She looked around the apartment and didn't see any other sign that Owen was there. She decided to wait and hope that he would show up.

About half an hour later, she noticed keys jingling outside the door. It stopped and then the door cracked open. There was a pause. Nikita got on her feet and pointed her fun at the door. The door as pushed open and there he was pointing his gun at Nikita. He looked angry.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he asked Nikita.

"I wanted to talk to you."

"I told you I didn't want to have anything to do with you or anyone else from Division. That part of my life is over."

"Listen, if you just put your gun down we can talk Owen."

"My name is not Owen. It's Sam," he raised his voice in frustration.

"Okay. Fine Sam. Let's talk." Nikita put her gun away. She waited for him to lower his gun. "I just wanted to ask you a couple of questions about Amanda."

"I don't know anything about Amanda."

"But I think you do."

"If you are worried about the black box it's gone."

"I saw it. You destroyed it Owen."

"I told you-"

"But it was Owen. You keep telling me that Owen is gone, but I don't think that's true. When I saw that the black box was destroyed I knew...that was something Owen would do. Owen would do the right thing, Owen would remember the people he hurt and the people he lost. He would come back to Emily's apartment. Owen is not gone and I need his help." He sighed and put his gun away.

"What do you want Nikita."

"I need information about Amanda."

"What did you talk to Amanda about?"

"I didn't do the talking. I was telling her to shut up most of the time. That woman will keep talking if you let her."

"What did she say? She helped you plan the bid for the black box at the G20."

"Yeah. She basically told me what to say to each client."

"For example."

"Well, for Brazil it was more...personal," he looked up at Nikita. "Revenge."

"On who?

"I showed them the video of the woman who killed a man who ran a huge drug cartel. With a knife, in a jacuzzi, with a red one piece bathing suit on." Nikita realized it was her and remembered the group of men that attacked her at the G20.

"Why in the hell would you do that?"

"It was just business. I just wanted my money and to never have to deal with you people again."

"Owen would never do that..." She mumbled to herself.

"Well like I told you, I'm not _Owen_. What does it take for you to believe that?" Nikita looked at him and tried to find the man she once knew. She knew that he was still in there somewhere.

"What else, Sam? How was she able to contact the men that got her out of the hotel? I went there to find her and was greeted by bullets."

"That's what I am still trying to figure out," Sam told her.

"I watched her at every minute and made sure she was out of reach to a phone."

"Did she do or say anything that stuck out to you?"

"Not really. She just blabbed on that she had an idea of who would win the bid. She said that whoever had access to the black box could overthrow the American government and someone with high influence would take over."

"Well, the vice president would take the position of the president and we do have the army to defend our country."

"She claimed that multiple countries would ban together to try and overrule the U.S. I don't know...Amanda is insane. She blabbed on about that and you. The woman is obsessed."

"What did she say?

"After I asked her what the hell she was doing to you in that chair the day I stumbled in, she just said that she had a plan for you."

Nikita sat and thought for a minute.

"So nothing stuck out to you? Who did she say she thought would win the bid?"

"She wouldn't say, but when I went to talk to the guy from German Intelligence-what was his name...Karl...Jaeger. She told me that if I said this quote to him he'd be interested."

"What quote?"

"I don't know it was something like...the best weapon against an enemy is another enemy...some Amanda bullshit."

"...that's it. That was her way of warning them. Those men were working with the German Intelligence."

"She had it set up from the beginning. She double-crossed me. She's lucky I shot Jaeger instead of her."

"Damn it. You did kill him...he was my only way of finding Amanda..."

"You know what, Nikita? You and Amanda have the strangest obsession with one another. You follow each other around. It's ridiculous, really. You both need to find a new hobby."

"I would love to move on with my life. That was my plan, but she has me trapped."

"How?"

"Have you been watching the news?"

"Yeah someone killed the pre-" he looked up at her in shock. "That was you?"

"I didn't kill her. She killed herself. Shot herself right in front of me with the gun I was given to use to kill her." Sam didn't know what to say and sat there in silence until he was able to fully process how Amanda was able to create such a mess.

"She really has it out for you..." Sam gave her a smirk.

"I can't have a life until I find her and end this now. She wanted me in jail, but I got free. She's not done with me yet and she has other plans bigger than any obsession with me."

"Then why the hell are you here? Why aren't you figuring this out with Michael and everyone. They can help you." Nikita looked away.

"What's the matter."

"...I left. I left Michael and...everyone."

"What?"

"I didn't want them to get hurt trying to save me from Amanda."

"So what are you going to do?

"I'm going to find Amanda and face her."

"What do you mean 'face her?'"

"What are you going to to do just walk up to her and say finish the job? You just going to give up?"

"Owe-Sam if I just let her keep chasing me, she will find a way to hurt everyone. She gave me an ultimatum: kill the president or Michael dies. I had no choice. So if I just keep letting her find ways to make me suffer how is it going to pan out next time? I don't even have a life anymore. I couldn't have one even if I wanted one. Even if I run, she will always be out there..."

Nikita was getting overwhelmed and had to stop. Sam stared at her in disbelief. In all the time that he had known Nikita she had never been one to give up. _Amanda must have really hit Nikita's breaking point. _Owen watched Nikita pace the floor completely distraught. He didn't know what to say or do. He started to feel bad for her. He knew that Nikita wanted more than anything to be with Michael. The fact that she was willing to sacrifice herself to save him showed how much she cared for him, but it was sad that they were being torn apart.

He thought about watching Emily get shot right where Nikita was standing. _Right here_. He never truly had the chance to be with her the way he wanted to. He had always loved her, but could never get too attached. Now that she was gone, he regretted that he never let go of his job and let himself show how much he really cared. But in some strange way, Emily knew that he cared. Now, watching Nikita be separated from Michael made him feel like Division was destroying love all over again. It was just a repeated cycle. What is worse, he had already been the cause of the death of her first love, Daniel. Now, she was standing there asking him for help so that she could find the woman who separated her from the man she was engaged to. He put himself in her shoes. If it were Emily, he would want his _friend_ to do the same for him. He began to think about how good of a friend Nikita had been to him when he was Owen and she even still tried to be his friend after he became Sam. He walked up to her and pulled her into a hug.

Nikita accepted the hug with surprise.

"Owen?" She asked wondering if the man she had known before had come back.

"Sam." He looked her in the eyes.

"Nikita...I remember my life. I remember who I was before I became Owen. I'm Sam now, but I realized that parts of Owen are still _me_. For what it is worth...I'm willing to help you." Nikita smiled and hugged him again.

"Thanks Sam."


	8. Lost and Found

**NOTE: Here is another chapter! Enjoy! **

Lost and Found

Alex and Ryan returned to the apartment greeted by Birkhoff, Sonya, and Michael anxiously waiting to find out what happened.

"How'd it all go?" Michael asked the two of them.

"Great," Alex said.

"Alright, I guess," Ryan said with a sigh.

"We should start with the iffy one," Birkhoff suggested.

"The president, he...I don't know. He seemed not to like me. He hinted that I was basically a headache to Spencer."

"Yeah, that may be partially true, but it wasn't only you that's for sure. Division is a headache to anyone who ever says its name."

"He said he would find out if my help would be needed, but it just seems like he doesn't want me involved at all."

"That's kind of strange considering how closely you worked with the president," Sonya added.

"We should keep an eye on this guy," Birkhoff said with skepticism.

"How about you Alex?" Michael asked.

"Things went great. They were treating me as if I'm going to solve all of their problems. Like I'm some kind of...great person."

"Well you are," Michael gave her one of his rare smiles. Alex smiled.

"I told them that they should try a different approach. They should try to rescue a whole house of girls rather than just individual girls. I told them that I can find the places and we can use more force."

"How'd they respond to that?" Ryan asked.

"They seemed unsure of how successful that would be but they are willing to try it. I know it will work. I went into a house to rescue those girls by myself and with the help of Nikita, we made it out safely. If we were able to do that with just the two of us, i'm pretty sure we can be just as successful with the UN."

They all agreed.

"Birkhoff can you pull up the map we have of all the shop facilities?"

Birkhoff put them up on the screen.

"Where do you want to start looking?"

"I have an idea," Michael said. He walked over to his white board that was scribbled on with red marker. "I was thinking about Amanda. What she had planned, who she was working with. She used Owen to keep the black box in her possession and work with the Germans. We were all wondering how the Germans won the bid. Of course Amanda was behind it. The man who represented the Germans, who was it? If we find him we may be able to find Amanda."

Birkhoff began searching and pulled the man's profile up.

"Karl Jaeger...has been known to do shady deals on the side in...human trafficking," Birkhoff said and looked up at Alex. "He's done work with a Dominik Bauer who leads a brothel in Germany. Unfortunately, we can't find out any details unless we get ahold of Bauer since Jaeger took a bullet from the pleasant Sam," Birkhoff said in a sarcastic tone. "He's been arrested a few times for trying to solicit women. It is known that he is involved in human trafficking, but it seems like he may have some shady cops backing him up."

"Do we know if there are any Shop facilities that might be near Bauer's brothel?" Ryan asked.

Birkhoff searched for information about brothels in Germany, areas where Bauer was associated with on Shadow Net, and compared it to areas where there were Shop facilities. He found a place in Berlin.

"Bingo," Birkhoff said.

"That's it. That's where we will start. We can get the women out of there and find out what Bauer may know about Jaeger and possibly Amanda as well," Alex said. "I'm going to talk to Maryam about getting the UN military to raid this place. I can go in and find Bauer before they arrest him."

"You can't Alex," Ryan said. "Alexandra Udinov survivor of human trafficking now trained assassin?"

"Yeah that'll completely blow your cover unless you want to say that you were trained by a secret government agency formerly known as Division," Birkhoff playfully smirked at her.

"Right...but we need someone in there. How else are we going to talk to him?"

"I'll do it," Michael volunteered.

"By yourself Michael? That's dangerous," Alex said.

"And let's not forget that we almost lost you..." Sonya said.

"I'll be fine. I'm the only one who can do it. I need to do my part. Don't worry. After your next meeting, Alex, give me full details of their plan so I can map out my window of time to grab this guy and get something out of him." Michael said.

"Okay," Alex nodded.

"We may not find Amanda after this, but we may find out something about what she is planning. If she was planning on working with the Germans there had to be a reason," Ryan said. "Good work everyone. Let's keep it up." Ryan smiled at everyone and went upstairs.

"Hey, Birkhoff, any luck finding Nikita?" Michael asked. Birkhoff's heart dropped. He froze and glanced up at Michael with a nervous laugh.

"No...No. She must be...far."

"You got Shadow Net up and running again, haven't you? Sonya?" Michael looked at her hoping she'd give him a straight answer.

"Well, we..." She looked between Michael and Birkhoff. "I'll try and see if I can get a signal. Hopefully she hasn't removed her tracker. I'll let you know what we come up with." Michael noticed their strange behavior, but just nodded and walked away. Alex waited for Michael to leave and walked up to Birkhoff and Sonya with her hands on her hips.

"Alright, spill it. What's going on?" Alex asked. Birkhoff let out a sigh and looked down at his keyboard.

"I just, I don't want him going after her. If Nikita left, she did it for a reason."

"But we can help her, Birkhoff. She needs to know that we have her back."

"And we do! Look at what we are trying to do now. Division is long gone, burnt to a crisp and yet we are still doing missions. We want to help Niki, but I don't think we should spend our time chasing after her if she doesn't want to be found."

Alex got closer to him and spoke softly so no one else could hear her.

"Find her. I just want to see where she is," Birkhoff paused unsure what to do.

"Do it Seymour," Sonya said. Birhoff looked Sonya in the eyes and she nodded to assure him. Birhoff sighed again and began searching for Nikita. Her picture came up on the screen and a map with a red dot.

"Montreal," He mumbled.

"Montreal? What would she be doing there?" Alex asked.

"Maybe she fled the country to lower he chances of being arrested for the crime." Sonya suggested.

"No, Canada has extradition laws..." Birkhoff zoomed in on her exact location.

"Wait a...I recognize this address. Montreal...Percy." Birkhoff looked up the police report on Owen Elliot when he made the news by shooting armed bank robbers. He pulled up Owen's information and remembered Percy sending a team there to eliminate Owen. Instead they shot a woman, Emily Robinson.

"She's at Owen's apartment. Well, his old apartment."

"What?"

"Or Sam or whoever the heck he is now." Birkhoff scoffed.

"Do you think she is with him right now?" Sonya asked.

"Possibly..." Birkhoff said.

"Hey Birkhoff..." Michael said as he walked into the room. Everyone jumped, surprised at his sudden entrance into the room. Birkhoff immediately shut down the search and pulled up a game. Everyone looked at Michael.

"Um... I just wanted to know if you could give me an update about the search for information about the President's death just to give keep up informed," Michael said.

"Uh...yeah sure Mikey," Birkhoff said.

"Okay, let me know what you come up with."

"Yup."

Michael left the room.

"Keep an eye on her Birkhoff," Alex said. Birkhoff nodded.

* * *

Alex walked to her room and sat on the bed completely exhausted. She was used to being exhausted. It was apart of her job description if there was one for trained assasin. She took her shoes off and then tried to massage her shoulders. Then, she remembered Sean, he used to do it for her. She had to urge to look behind her hoping he would be there. But he wasn't. And would never be. She felt the urge to cry, an urge that she had often felt after that day. She got up and closed her door and then laid on her back in the bed looking up at the ceiling. She let herself cry this time, and it was a build up of all the tears she had not let out before. She turned cold. She almost turned back to drugs. In a way, she was happy that those men tried to pin her down in that day when she planned on doing drugs. It reminded her of what she did not want to become again and what she had the potential to do. But it was so hard, and there were days when she just couldn't deal with it. The days when she hesitated to tell Nikita, because she didn't want to worry her were the days when she would lean on Sean. She never had to say what was bothering her; he already knew. But it was gone now.

Once the first tear ran down the side of her face, the rest of them ran down like they had been trapped waiting to be free.

"Sean..." She covered her face with her forearm and felt a slight throb in her head from trying to keep from crying. "I miss you so much."

She rolled over on her side and closed her eyes. She couldn't believe that Nikita left Michael. They were both survivors. They made it through everything together, and Alex knew that they would make it through even now. They were inseparable. Yet, Nikita decided to run. It almost made Alex mad. Alex lost the man she loved and couldn't be with him if she wanted to. Yet, Nikita left Michael.

She forced herself to shake those thoughts out of her head. As much as she may have envied Nikita and Michael's relationship, she understood why Nikita had to leave. Alex wanted to do everything is her power to help her friend. She had done things that she wasn't proud of, and it was time for her to turn over a new leaf. She wanted the people she loved to be proud of her, she wanted to be proud of herself, and she wanted Sean to be proud of her.

**I really wanted to portray how Alex feels about losing Sean. In the show, they made her deal with it by going on a rampage trying to rescue the girls and being reckless. I wanted to show that she is still hurting and is trying to keep it together on the outside, but really has no one to vent to. ****Hope you all liked this chapter! **


	9. Unexpected Call

**NOTE: Hi everyone! Sorry for the long delay again, been pretty busy. And I'm slowly developing the story so I didn't get to the part you all are waiting for yet-Nikita and Michael seeing one another again. But I'm getting to it very soon. However, you will see hints of it in this chapter. I'll hopefully have more posted at the end of this week. Thanks for reading! **

Unexpected Call

The next morning Alex woke up feeling drowsy. She had cried herself to sleep and ended up sleeping through the rest of the day. She had work, but she really didn't feel like going. After forcing herself out of bed, she took a shower, then went downstairs to see what everyone was up to. They all looked at her when she entered the room.

"And she has awoken," Birkhoff said.

"Where were you? We haven't seen you since yesterday afternoon?" Michael asked.

"Oh, I fell asleep. I was tired." They all nodded.

"We have some new developments in the "president's assassination'," Ryan said to Alex.

"Enlighten me."

Birkhoff pulled up the news that had been on earlier that morning.

_As the American people still mourn the death of President Spencer, the CIA is still working to uncover the mystery behind the president's death. New information has been uncovered about President Spencer's former personal assistant, Janet Malcolm. An unknown source claims that Malcolm was found by a construction worker strapped to a wooden beam inside of a house that is under construction in a new housing development. Malcolm was frantic and anxious asking to return home to her family. When told that President Spencer had been assassinated, she according to police "dropped to her knees crying and shaking." No other information has been released about any information that Malcolm has about the assassination or whether or not she may be involved. She was given time to recuperate from the tragic event and has not yet returned to the White House..._

"Alex and I met Nikita in a housing development that day," Michael told everyone.

"Nikita must have put her there. She must have used Janet to get access to the president," Alex said.

"Janet Malcolm," Ryan said. "I've seen her around...If she met Nikita that day, she must suspect that Nikita is the one who did it...I'm sure she's seen the picture on the news."

"Do you think she told them what she knows already?" Sonya asked.

"I'm sure she has. Problem is: the police have no idea who the woman is that she identified. When Nikita spoke to the president in public she used a fake name," Ryan said.

"Looks like we need to make a house visit," Michael said in his stern voice.

"Mikey, you don't want to frighten the woman. I'm pretty sure she is terrified already," Birkhoff said.

"Janet knows who I am. If Michael and I go and speak with her, I think we can find out what she knows," Ryan suggested.

Everyone nodded in agreement.

"And I'll set up everything with the UN today about raiding Bauer's brothel. But before I do that, I need to go to a dealership and buy a car," Alex said remembering that they still only had one car to split between all of them.

"Well, that shouldn't be very hard for Alexandra Udinov," Birkhoff joked.

* * *

While Alex was at the UN, Michael and Ryan went to Janet Malcolm's home in D.C. They arrived at a cozy two story single home in a quiet suburban town. They got out of the car and walked silently up to the door. Ryan rang the doorbell and waited.

"Just...let me do all of the talking or most of the talking. At least until she is willing to talk to us," Ryan told Michael. Michael just looked at Ryan and then back at the door. Ryan could tell that Michael was still dealing with Nikita sudden decision to leave, and although Michael was still trying to be his normal self, he was obviously a lot more stern and serious than usual.

A man opened the front door who they supposed was Janet's husband. The man looked between the two of them with skepticism. He probably thought they were more journalists.

"Sorry but Janet isn't home..." Mr. Malcolm started.

"Mr. Malcolm, sir, my name is Ryan Fletcher I am am from the CIA. I worked with Janet. I would really like to speak with her if she has time." Malcolm looked at Fletcher with less skepticism, and then looked at Michael.

"My name is Michael, I also worked with Janet at the CIA, but we never met in person. Right now Mr. Fletcher and I are working on President Spencer's case."

"In any event, we just want to see how Janet is doing," Ryan said. Malcolm opened the front door. Ryan didn't show it, but he was happy. Talking to Janet would hopefully give them new information about everything that happened that day.

Malcolm walked them down the hall and to the living room where Janet was sitting on the couch with the television on.

"Mr. Malcolm..." Ryan started.

"You can call me Brian."

"Okay, Brian, have you gotten a lot of attention from the media?" Ryan asked. Brian scoffed.

"Oh yeah. We had news reporters in front of our house. I couldn't go to work without someone running up to me with questions. It was a media circus out there. They left yesterday after getting bored, I suppose."

"Honey, who is at the door?" Janet called from the living room. Brian stopped them before they got to the living room.

"She is still upset about what happened. She's been watching the news reports back to back. She hasn't been to work. Just do me a favor and don't make it worse, alright?" He led them into the living room.

"You can tell those reporters to lea..." Janet stopped when she saw Ryan. It was silent as they all stared at one another.

"Hi Janet," Ryan said. "Nice to see you again. It's been a while." Janet was in a daze and managed to let out an awkward laugh.

"Ryan Fletcher, it really has been a while..."

"Are you okay, Janet?" Brian asked.

"Yes, I'm fine. Please have a seat, Ryan and..."

"Michael." Michael put out his hand for her to shake, and then he sat down on the loveseat while Ryan sat on the chair on the other other side.

"I'll just be upstairs. I'm going to check on Aaron," Brian said and left the room. Janet didn't take her eyes of of Ryan.

"Janet..."

"Listen, I had nothing to do with it, alright?" Janet said. "I didn't know. I..." She got frustrated and turned off the TV.

"Janet, we didn't come here to accuse you of anything..." Ryan tried to convince her. "We just wanted to talk to you about the woman you described..."

Janet looked up at him again, but this time with a hint of fear in her eyes.

"I should've known...I should've known something was going to go wrong. I-I should have said 'no,' but...she threatened me, _my family_," she began to whisper suggesting that she hadn't told her husband about everything that happened that day.

"Things went a lot different that day than you probably suspect," Michael said.

"What do you mean?" She looked at Michael.

"We'll get to that in a little. I want to ask first what happened to you that day when you came in contact with the woman?" Ryan asked. She paused, then looked down at her hands.

"I was just at a quiet restaurant that I usually go to for coffee in the morning. I was getting up to go to work when I saw her..."

"What was her name?"

"Susan...Mason."

Ryan and Michael looked at one another.

"She was wearing a long trench coat, she had a suitcase. I was shocked, surprised that she was there, that I saw her again. She didn't remember me, but when I reminded her that I helped her get into the gala for the G20, she remembered. Then, she told me that she was doing a lecture at Georgetown and then asked me if she could get onto the president's schedule...that day. I told her is was impossible, but she showed me her gun. I-I was terrified. She made me drive to the construction sight and then call and ask my coworker to put her on the schedule. Luckily, it worked; I don't know what she would have done to me..."

"What happened after that?"

"She taped me up inside of that house...I sat there for about two and a half hours until someone found me there..." The distress was still on her face as she thought about what happened.

"What did you tell the construction worker?"

"I told them that some-crazy woman taped me up there!"

"And the police?"

"I told them everything I told you. I told them that she seemed very close to the president. President Spencer would always stop what she was doing to talk to Susan...she seemed like a nice person. I just can't believe that she killed the president.."

"Janet, that's what we wanted to talk to you about. She did not kill the President..." Michael told her. Janet looked at him in disbelief.

"W-what do you mean? The president was shot in the oval office-she had to...they are showing that picture of her on the news. I told them what I knew about her. Come to find out, there is no Susan Mason." Janet said. "And when she was taping me up inside that house she said 'if I fail there will be no reason to live.' What does that even mean?" Janet asked. Ryan and Michael looked at one another again. "Am I missing something here?"

"What she meant by that is," Michael said. "She was trying to save...someone she knew. She had a gun to her head. Someone told her to kill the president in order to save her friend." Janet paused and looked between them.

"You're kidding right? That's ridiculous," she let out a chuckle and noticed that they still looked at her with a serious expression. "You are...serious."

"Very much so. The woman you met, her name is Nikita and she did not kill the president, the president killed herself," Ryan told her. Janet was taken back. She looked at them with wide eyes and let out a gasp.

* * *

Birkhoff sat at his computer playing a computer game with Sonya and he was losing.

"Damn it!" he yelled and sat back in his chair. Sonya laughed and put her arms up.

"I told you you couldn't beat me, Seymour."

"Yeah, yeah. I want a second round," He said.

"I don't know...I feel bad playing games while everyone is out trying to help Nikita...maybe we should go back to doing some research and working on Shadow Net..."

"One more game won't hur..." He stopped when he heard a familiar voice coming out of his bluetooth headset.

"Birkhoff!"

"What the-Niki?" He said as he pressed the ear piece into his ear. Sonya looked at him with total shock. He switched to speaker mode to make the sound come from his computer. Her location showed on his screen again; she was sill in Montreal.

* * *

"Nerd, I need your help." Nikita said into Sam's phone.

"Niki...you know you have some explaining to do. Your sudden disappearance has everyone worried." Nikita felt a pit in her stomach.

"I know..."

"I mean, you just left. Where are you?" Birkhoff asked curious to see if she would tell him.

"I...I need to do this on my own Birkhoff,"

"You're in Montreal right now. Are you with Sam?" She paused, but she wasn't surprised. She knew Birkhoff could track her. "Niki if you didn't want anyone to know where you were you should have cut out your tracker."

"I wanted you all to know that I was okay...does Michael know?"

"Only Sonya, Alex, and I know where you are," he told her. She sighed in relief.

"Thank you..."

"But, really, I can't keep up this lie forever that I have not completely restored Shadow Net. For one: I tend to be pretty efficient with computers and would not like to spoil my reputation and also Ryan and Michael will figure it out eventually. I'm not trying to make Michael any more upset than he already is. Mikey is not the most fun guy to be around right now..."

"I know, I know but I need you to do me this one favor and just try to avoid saying anything for now."

"Alright, but I'm expecting a call, especially for Michael."

"Alright."

"What do you need?" He asked.

"I need you to look up some information about Karl Jaeger?" Birkhoff paused. "Can you do that?"

"Yeah just give me a minute..." Birkhoff typed away on his computer. "Jaeger is connected to a brothel in Berlin which is controlled by a guy named Dominik Bauer. If you want to find out anymore information about Jaeger, you should start with him."

"Thanks Birkhoff, I owe you."

"But if you plan to go there...don't go until I tell you."

"What?"

"There is going to be a raid on the place. I wouldn't suggest going beforehand, because you might mess up their plans. You should go on the day of the raid right before...if you want I can walk you through it, give you directions...like old times."

"That would be great, thank you...how do you know about this raid?" She asked. Nikita heard him pause on the other end again.

"I've been following some information that I've been getting from Shadow Net. Besides that, don't forget that call, alright?" Birkhoff said.

"Alright. Thanks," She hung up the phone with a feeling that he wasn't telling her something. She was staring off when Sam tapped her.

"Hey, you alright?" He asked.

"Yeah, I just...I feel like he's not telling me something."

"Probably true." Nikita sat down on Sam's new couch and put her fingers through her hair with a sigh.

"I need to talk to Michael."

"I think you should," Sam said. She looked at him for an explanation.

"When I was with Emily I had to keep a lot of things from her. I couldn't tell her about my job, my past, why I was having certain feelings. Michael not only knows where you came from, but he also understands first hand what you've been through as a Division agent. You have the ability to be completely open with him. You're lucky." Nikita began to feel guilty. She knew she would have to face Michael eventually. She just couldn't figure out what she was going to say to him when that time came.


	10. The Mission

**NOTE: Finally got to the part I wanted to get to, and it has some action! This starts with Ryan and Michael's talk with Janet. It picks up where I left off in the last chapter just in case it is confusing. As always, let me know what you all think! Thanks for reading! **

The Mission

"No...that can't be possible," Janet said not wanting to believe that President Spencer could have killed herself.

"And Nikita would not have hurt you or your family. As we said, she had a gun to her head," Michael told her.

"I don't understand. Why was she there, then?"

"She was there to kill the president, but only by force. When she got confirmation that she did not have to go through with it once her friend was safe, she told the president why she was there and told her that there were people working for her that wanted her dead. She said something changed in the president. She described it as a 'switch that went off in her head' and she shot herself. Then, they framed her for it," Michael said.

"And then killed four secret service men, some of our best."

"No that wasn't her. Serling. You know him? He killed the men. Then, she killed him. He was the one who gave her the gun to kill the president, Ryan told her. Janet looked more confused than ever.

"If this is true, why are you telling me this? Isn't this confidential?"

"It is, the CIA doesn't even know the truth."

"Why? And how do you know it?"

"Because the CIA wouldn't believe it, or try to and Nikita is my friend. It is even hard for us to understand everything that happened," Ryan told her.

"And what makes you think that I would believe it?"

"Because you are an honest person, Janet, and not only that, you are smart. Do you think that a single woman would have been able to get into the White House, pass security with a gun, and get to the oval office all on her own? It wouldn't have been possible unless someone else was helping her," Ryan suggested. Janet thought for a moment.

"What is it that you want from me? Telling me this isn't going to help you. You should just tell your story to the CIA," She said.

"They won't to anything that will help. They believe they are hunting a killer, not an innocent woman who has done more for their country than they will ever know," Michael said.

"Oh yeah?" She scoffed. "Like what?"

"She worked for a covert government agency called Division. She is a trained assassin, like I am," Michael told her. Ryan looked at Michael and then at Janet who sat in disbelief.

"You mean to tell me that there is a secret government agency that no one knows about?"

"And at this point cannot be proven to have existed. All the evidence has been wiped out. Janet, why do you think that I worked so closely with the president? If you read my file, it just says that I am a low-level analyst for the CIA." Janet sat silently soaking it all in. Then, she looked at both of them.

"What is it that you want from me?"

"We want you to return to work," Michael said.

"And hopefully be like an ally to us. You will work closely with President Allen and you will know what he is doing and who he is meeting with. You will have access to everything and you can be our eyes on the inside," Ryan told her.

"What if I say 'no?'" Janet asked.

"We might not ever find out what happened to President Spencer. We need information that will help us find the people who caused this," Michael said.

"You mean, there are people involved in this supposed suicide?" Both of them nodded and Janet didn't know what to think.

"Janet, do you remember the G20?" Michael said.

"Yes, an eventful day to say the least."

"Do you remember that message you got on your phone of a black box that looked like it had been destroyed?" She nodded.

"That was Division. Look, it all may seem strange to you, but I just ask that you trust me. If you do, we will be sure to find out what is going on. And we will leave you out of if. No one will know what you are doing." Janet sat for a while contemplating. Finally, she sighed and then nodded.

"I'll do it," she said with confidence. Ryan smiled at her.

"Thank you. We will be in touch," Ryan told her. Janet smiled at him.

* * *

Amanda walked up to President Spencer who was strapped to a chair.

"Are you comfortable?" Amanda asked as she prepared all of her medical instruments on a table.

"What are you going to do?" Spencer asked.

"Remember when I told you that I had plans for you? Well, you are going to help me get what I want."

"And what is that? Power?"

"Well, I'm definitely going to work on that, yes. Thank you for reminding me. You are also going to help me get Nikita."

"Nikita? Why are you so worried about Nikita?" Amanda shot a glare at her.

"She was supposed to be in jail for your murder, but she got out. It's just unfinished business."

"Why are you going through all of this trouble? You aren't going to get what you want this way. You will destroy yourself. Trust me. That is what my job as president is all about, keeping people like you from hurting the American people."

"Bravo President Spencer. You've done a wonderful job so far. Now, of course the people who have the best intentions were almost killed, because you didn't want the government's dirty laundry aired out for the public to see," Amanda smirked.

"As president you sometimes have to make decisions that may not be the best. You have to outweigh the pros and the cons. I couldn't let the public know about Division..." Spencer said.

"Mhm. Well, you should be glad that you made the decision to let Division and everyone inside Division live because right now, Ryan Fletcher and everyone else is trying to figure out what really happened to you," Amanda told her.

"They are going to find you," Spencer said.

"Exactly. Don't worry you will see what happens," Amanda said.

"This is all a game to you."

"Life is a game. You just have to learn how to play your cards the right way to survive. You should know this Mrs. President."

* * *

A few days had passed since Alex went to the UN with her plan, Michael and Ryan visited Janet, and Birkhoff got that unexpected call from Nikita.

Nikita grabbed a hang gun and a knife from the back of the trunk of her truck. She was only able to scrounge up a few things before Division was destroyed. She knew that firepower was not the key to this mission, but dexterity which she was especially skilled at. She went back into Sam's apartment.

"I'm leaving," she told Sam.

"Me too," he replied. She looked him for an explanation.

"I'm going with you." She looked at him with surprise.

"You're going? I thought you didn't want to be involved with this anymore."

"Well, you are. That's a good enough reason to go. I can't let you go alone. Besides I made a promise to protect you," he told her. She furrowed her eyebrows and watched him walk towards the front door.

"To who?" He just smiled and walked out the door to Nikita's car. They left for Berlin.

* * *

Michael did mission prep just like he would have at Division and then left for Berlin. He was waiting for a signal from Alex and Birkhoff giving him the okay to go inside the brothel. Alex was at the UN with Maryam and her team. It still bothered Alex that she couldn't go into the field and that Michael was on his own. Everyone took extra precautions to make sure nothing was going to go wrong. Unfortunately, it can never be predicted.

* * *

BERLIN, GERMANY

Nikita and Sam waited in a hotel for Birkhoff's signal.

"So what is your plan anyway? Go in and beat the guy up until you get him to spill the beans about the Shop and Amanda?"

"Violence only when necessary," she said as she studied the information about Dominik Bauer. "This guy has done everything from driving violations to federal crimes. He's even been arrested for soliciting girls."

"Great. An all around scum bag. I don't feel sorry for the guy one bit that he is probably going to get smacked around by us and then then the police." Nikita looked out the window and stared off distracted with her thoughts.

"When I asked Birkhoff how he knows that there will be a raid, he didn't give me a straight answer. He isn't a good liar," she said.

"Why would he keep it from you?"

"I don't know."

"Well, you did leave without telling them and I'm sure they are up to their own investigation. I would say worry about that when we are done with today." Nikita nodded in agreement.

* * *

UNITED NATIONS

Alex sat in a meeting with Maryam and everyone who was helping to come up with a plan to free the girls living in Bauer's brothel.

"The raid is set to happen in two hours. I must admit I am a little anxious. From what you are saying, he has a whole house of women," Maryam said. Alex had spoken with Michael who was already on site. He could see that the place was fairly large and could have over one hundred girls inside.

"I'm sure it is going to work out in our favor. We can free all of those girls and put the perpetrator behind bars where he will not be able to hurt anyone else again," Alex said.

Maryam smiled.

"You know, Ms. Udinov, you have really made a great contribution to our team. Without you, we would never have had the chance to make such a difference," one of the board members said.

"Thank you," Alex smiled. "I'm glad that I can be apart of the effort."

"You know Alexandra, word has gotten out that you are working with the UN. We have been getting a lot of calls from news reporters asking for interviews with you. I've even heard talk of wanting to do a mini biography of you on television. I think it would be a great opportunity to make the public aware of our efforts but also to give you the recognition that you deserve. You've dealt with human trafficking before. You understand these girls a lot better than a lot of us may. The fact that you have decided to help these girls is amazing. I really think that you should consider putting your story out there," Maryam said.

Alex felt uncomfortable again. She didn't want all of the attention. She just want to help girls like her while trying to help her friend out of this huge mishap. She hasn't even thought about whether or not she was going to continue working with the UN. She thought about it, she really took up this position partly because of Nikita. Although she never really took Amanda's words to heart, she was tricked by Amanda to believe that Nikita was only focused on her efforts and no one else's, but she knew that wasn't true. However, she also realized that maybe she did not focus enough on her own goals. Maybe being apart of this, something bigger than herself would help fulfill her needs to be strong, independent, and helpful. _It is time for Alexandra Udinov to do some good_, she told her friends. It was time.

She nodded and looked at everyone.

"I will definitely consider it. I think you are right. I can really make a difference with my story."

* * *

Nikita got the signal from Birkhoff to go into Bauer's brothel. She and Sam walked through with caution holding their guns in front of them.

"Turn left. There is a long hallway that should lead you to another room. They turned and came upon a hallway full of small bunkers like a jail. Each girl had her own small section. They looked up and saw Nikita and Sam. Some began to panic.

"We are not here to hurt you. We are getting you out of here," she whispered in German. One of the girls began speaking to her in German.

"He is in there."

"_Danke_," Nikita said and walked up to the door with her gun up. She paused and looked behind her at Sam. He nodded and then she kicked the door open.

It led to another small corridor and then a large warehouse. There were two hummers and a large van parked inside and men sitting around a table with a large amount of cash. Nikita spotted Bauer immediately and saw the anger in his face. Without any words the men grabbed for their guns and began shooting. Nikita and Sam took cover behind on of the hummers and then began shooting. Nikita was able to shoot a man in the chest and Owen got someone in the leg.

They stopped firing their guns and took cover until they heard a man yell in German and the gunfire stopped. They took the chance to weave through the cars and get in close enough range to shoot two more of the men. Sam was able to kick the gun out of one man's hand and punch him in the abdomen and upper cut him in the jaw. The man dropped to the ground. Nikita ran up to Bauer who was a lot larger than she had imagined. He towered over her and was very stocky. It was obvious this guy spent a lot of time weight lifting. He threw a couple of punches at her and knocked the breath out of her with a blow to the stomach. She stepped back trying to catch her breath and then then threw punches at his face. He blocked them. He threw another punch that hit her in the shoulder.

She knew she had to think fast or else this guy was going to knock her out. _Dexterity_. On the side of them was a metal railing that was attached to a ramp leading to another door into the house. She grabbed that railing and lifted herself up to kick him in the face. At that moment Sam jumped in and grabbed the guy into a head lock that he struggled to hold. Nikita stole the chance to throw punches at his stomach and ribs. She put all of her strength into a punch to the side of his face that cut into his skin. He began to bleed from the side of his eyebrow. Sam lost his grasp around the guys neck after Bauer gripped Sam's wrists. Bauer attempted to grab Nikita and she kneed him in his crotch which sent him to the ground. She knew that would do the trick.

"Really? I could've had him," Sam scoffed while trying to catch his breath.

"I don't have time for this. We need to get this done."

They managed to get him into a folding chair that was at the table and made him face them. Nikita flipped a chair around so that she could lean against the back of the chair and placed it across from him. Sam stood there with his arms folded.

"I need you to answer some questions for me," Nikita said.

"I'm not tellin' you shit!" Bauer said with a thick accent.

"I'm not asking you, I'm telling you. Who is Karl Jaeger?" The man's eyes grew wide and then he looked away.

"I don't know who he..."

"Stop lying! Now, answer me!" She yelled getting out of the chair as fast as she sat down quickly losing her patience with the oversized thug.

"No-" Nikita slugged him across the face making him spit out blood. He just began to laugh. Sam had been pacing the floor.

"I'm getting tired of this guy," he charged toward him and hit him across the face again, and this time Bauer stopped laughing.

"Who is Karl Jaeger?" Nikita asked again. "How was he involved in your human trafficking business?"

"You really think I'm going to give away that information?"

"You will because Karl Jaeger is dead and I can expose you and run you out of business. And I know you don't want that to happen. I can keep you here and burn this whole place down," she stared him in the eyes and was so close to him that she could feel the anger in his eyes.

"Jaeger helped me make deals. He helped me find potential buyers. He opened up my business to a whole new level. We've made a fortune."

"What kind of buyers? Buying what? Women for their sex crimes?"

"Live human beings. Test subjects."

"Test subjects?" He smirked.

"There's a lot of science out there. It is naive to think that all of the experimentation is done only on animals."

"So you sell your women to the highest bidder so that they can be used against their will for a twisted science experiment?"

"For the advancement of scientific research. They are all just nobodies and drug addicts-thrown away by their families and society." She slapped him across the face. "So you take personal offends to that?"

"This is not about me. Answer my questions and don't say anything else otherwise or else this is going to get harder for you."

* * *

Michael made it inside the building. While Birkhoff listened in on Nikita's verbal battle with Bauer, Sonya directed Michael through the building. She muted herself and looked over at Birkhoff.

"Are you sure we shouldn't just tell them that they are going to see one another? What if it doesn't end nicely?"

"I did this on purpose. They need to see one another and Nikita needs to stop avoiding him. Besides, they can help each other get out of there safely because the UN should be there soon. Nikita you have about five minutes," he said into his headset. Sonya gave him an unsure look and went back to watching Michael

* * *

Nikita heard Birkhoff's five minute warning, but kept her attention on Bauer.

"Who have you sold girls to?"

"...that I can't tell you," he started but got another punch in the face by Sam and a punch in the stomach. Nikita raised her fist to punch him, but he put his hand out to stop her.

"Okay! Alright. I don't know the guy, never met him, but he works for the Shop. That's what Jaeger said it was called anyway." Nikita was finally getting the information she needed.

"What are they using the girls for?"

"I don't really know the details. They say it is confidential but I know that they are doing something with human replication, I guess. Cloning. Who knows what the hell else they are doing." Nikita thought about Michael's hand.

"Where are they located?" The man paused. Nikita gave him a look and he sighed.

"It's about an hour from here in Frankfurt."

"Have you met a woman?"

"A woman? You are going to have to give me more than that..."

"Brown hair, lots of makeup. Her name is Amanda."

"Amanda...Jaeger said something to me about a new business partner that works with the Shop. She was looking for a woman of a certain height and build with the ability to speak English and who had blond hair."

"She bought a woman from you?"

"Jaeger just told me to give her away which I didn't want to do, but he said that I would be paid later," Bauer said. Nikita looked at Sam.

"Who knows what Amanda had planned," Sam said.

"Where is she?"

"How am I supposed to know?"

"Where did you send the woman to?" Nikita asked. He just smiled at her. Nikita grabbed his shirt in her hands.

"Answer me!" Just then, the door was kicked open. Nikita and Sam pointed their guns at the door, and then saw that it was Michael. Sam pointed his gun back at Bauer and Nikita stood there in shock.

"...Nikita?"


	11. A New Beginning

**NOTE: Everyone! Sorry this update took so long! I've been so busy that I haven't had the chance to work on the story, but don't worry! I plan on finishing this one =) I usually proof read my work before I post it, but I wanted to get this to you guys so please excuse any mistakes. I'm going to try to get to it this week. Thanks so much for all the great comments! I love the feedback and it really helps me keep to keep the story going. ****I hope you all enjoy this chapter! **

A New Beginning

"Michael?" Nikita said unsure if he was really standing right in front of her. He slowly walked towards her. "Michael what are you doing here?"

"I've been wanting...I'm glad you are here..." Michael said in awe completely unaware of her question. He reached to hug her, but she stepped back.

"Michael we can talk later. We don't have time right now, and I'm not finished talking to-"

"Nikita and Michael you need to get out of there now. The UN is in the building," Birkhoff told them. Nikita turned around to grab Bauer but Michael grabbed her arm.

"Nikita I need to talk to you-"

"Michael-"

"I think we should finish the mission first," Sam said. Michael turned to look at Sam, noticing that he was there for the first time. He pointed his gun at Sam and frowned.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

"Woah, chill. I'm just here with Nikita."

"Michael put your gun down. Sam is on our side." She pushed Sam's arm down to make him lower his gun. She turned back around and grabbed Bauer.

"Start talking!"

"Looks like you've got some problems to sort out."

"Tell me where you sent the girl!"

"The United States."

"Where in the United States?" He gave her another smirk.

"You found me, didn't you? You can find her."

"Nikita we need to go," Michael said. Nikita punched Bauer in the face one last time to knock him out so he couldn't escape and they went out the doors of the warehouse.

A few seconds later, the UN military came rushing into the warehouse only to find a mess of wounded and dead men on the ground. They all searched the barn and checked for survivors; there were still some who were breathing. One of the men walked over to Bauer who was slumped over in the chair.

"We found Dominik Bauer and his men...but it looks like someone was here before us," the man said into his com.

* * *

Alex sat in the room with Maryam and the rest of the board members wanting bad to go back to the safe house to help Birkhoff and Sonya and to find out what was going on. She excused herself from the room and walked down the hallway to the bathroom. She looked under the stalls checking to make sure no one was in there. Once she knew it was safe, she called Birkhoff.

"Yeah?"

"Birkhoff how is everything going?"

"UN just arrived at Bauer's dungeon, Nikita, Michael, and Sam are out safely..."

"Wait Sam?-Nikita?" Birkhoff closed his eyes annoyed that once again he couldn't keep his mouth shut.

"Yeah she-I helped her get there...it's a long story, but everyone's alright."

"Did they get the girls out?"

"They are probably doing it as we spea-I got to go, Niki needs directions." Birkhoff hung up the phone. Alex looked at her phone and sighed in disbelief that Nikita and Sam were there. There was so much that she was missing out on. She should be there, she thought. Then, she thought about everything that she was doing off the field, and she remembered that it was all worth it.

* * *

They ran in the direction of their cars and then Nikita turned to Michael. Sam stopped and turned around as well. Michael frowned at him.

"Michael I have to go."

"I need to talk to you, Nikita. You can't keep avoiding me." Nikita could see the frustration in Michael's eyes and knew that she needed to talk to him. It was time to stop running.

"...ill meet you at your hotel. Birkhoff can tell me where it is, right Birkhoff?"

"You know I can," he said.

"We'll talk then," Nikita said and began running to the woods where they parked their car. Michael went in the opposite direction.

They stopped running once they felt safe and made it to the dirt road in the woods. They began their walk silently.

"So...I guess Michael doesn't like me very much," Sam said.

"He just remembers you turning against all of your friends at Division and working with Amanda to sell the black box," Nikita reminded him. He got quiet then looked up at her.

"That's one thing I never understood about you, Michael, and everyone else in that hole. Why did you stay? You could've left. Everyone for themselves, right? I did whatever I could to get out of there and make sure I was well off so I would never have to work another day in my life."

"It is about family, Sam. It is about not leaving your friends behind. We are in this together. I hadn't had that concept of family when I first started, trust me. But I always cared about the people who had been there for me, always."

"Then why leave your 'family' behind?" Sam asked. Nikita got quiet and looked down at the ground.

They had made it to the car and Nikita got into the driver seat. She sat there staring out the window in a daze.

"Because I didn't want to hurt them or get them hurt, but I guess leaving didn't solve my problem either." Nikita didn't say anything more. She started up the car and turned on her com.

"Birkhoff can you give me directions to Michael's hotel?" Nikita asked.

"Sending them to Sam's phone now," he said.

Nikita drove to the hotel and then let Sam take the car. He got into the driver seat and then rolled down the window.

"Should I be expecting to hear from you tonight?" He said in a joking tone.

"I'll make sure I call to check in," she joked. Sam gave her a slight smile then his face turned serious.

"Be honest with him, Nikita." She nodded and smiled. She walked into the hotel.

"I told Mikey that you were on your way."

"You set all of this up didn't you, Nerd?"

"I'm signing off now. Good job today. Hope to see you soon." Nikita pulled the com out of her ear, shook her head, and smiled. She should've known that Birkhoff was behind it, and she was glad. If it was up to her, she didn't know if she would have been meeting with Michael.

* * *

She started to get butterflies in her stomach as she walked up to his door. She took a deep breath and tried to prepare herself for the conversation she was going to have with him. Nikita had been through a lot in her life and was trained to deal with a lot of things, but, at that moment, she was terrified. She didn't want to lose him; it scared her more than anything.

Finally, she knocked on his door. When he opened the door, the was a silent, tense air between them as he stared with at her with raised eyebrows and something like a smile on his face. She didn't know whether or not to hug him, kiss him, or neither. She just walked in once he opened the door. The room was small with only a bed, a small bureau, a chair in the corner, and a window overlooking Berlin. It reminded her of the hotel they stayed in together during their plan to kill Kasim. She walked over to the window and stared out at the city.

Michael shut the door and watched her from afar. He didn't know where to start. His mouth wanted to open, but the words wouldn't come out. He had so much to say, but he couldn't do it. He finally cleared his throat and tried to speak.

"So...how exactly did you find out about the raid?"

"Guess," she said turning around. Michael put on one of his smirks.

"Birkhoff." Nikita nodded and they both smiled.

"He wanted us to run into each other, i'm assuming," Nikita said.

"It is too bad that we had to have someone else put us in the same room together," Michael said looking at the floor. Nikita felt the nervous feeling again and tried to swallow.

"Michael, I wanted to tell you before I left, but I knew..."

"You knew what? That I'd follow you? That I would want to be with my fiancée?"

"I didn't want any of you near me. After what happened, I couldn't risk losing anyone again, especially you Michael. I don't know...what I'd do if-"

"And how do you think I feel about you? This isn't one-sided, Nikita. Why would I feel okay with you running off by yourself to find Amanda, with no backup, no support?" Michael got so frustrated that he began to pace the little room. Nikita watched him. She could tell out of all of the things that she had done, this one hurt him the most. "Nikita you have no idea what it felt like to see that ring sitting on the window seal...You have no idea what it feels like to be left behind by the person you love without so much as a goodbye. I was willing to put my life on the line for you to keep you from ruining yours and even after everything you leave. It was like a slap in the face, Nikita."

Nikita's heart was racing, her hands were shaking, and she reminded herself that she needed to breathe. She could feel his anger, his frustration, and his disappointment. He had been inching closer and closer then he turned his back on her and walked to the other side of the room. She felt like she was going to lose him any minute. She needed to explain herself.

"Michael, I have lost so much to Division. I lost Daniel, I lost Carla, and I almost lost you a fair amount of times. There is only so much that I can take. I thought that once we got rid of Division that all of our problems would disappear and that we could be together, finally, but that's not the case. I have to end this..." She reached up to put her hand on the back of his shoulder, but he swiftly turned back around which made her back up.

"We! Nikita...we need to end this. You are not alone anymore. You think that it is your obligation to make decisions for all of the people around you to the point where you keep everyone you love worried sick about you," he walked up to her. "When I asked you to marry me, I expected that we were in this together. No matter what. I don't want to be by myself anymore, and if this is too much for you...just say so." Nikita was taken back.

"Are you saying that you don't want to be with me anymore?" Michael sighed and shook his head.

"Of course not. I love you, but if you want this to work, we have to be in this together," he said. Nikita felt tears in her eyes and tried to keep them in, but they escaped. She quickly wiped one away, but more came running down her cheeks faster than she could wipe them away. She stepped forward, but hesitated. She didn't know what to think at that point. She didn't know if he would want to deal with it anymore. No matter what she did, she felt like she was always the reason that they couldn't be together. She was afraid of losing him like she lost Daniel. It scared her to death, and the only way she knew how to deal with it was to control the situatio

Michael noticed her hesitation. She could never hide anything from him. He had known her since she was a recruit. He was trained to read people's expressions and emotions and he knew hers all too well. When she felt vulnerable, she tended to back away from the situation or charge at it like a bull. She seemed to be straddling the line between the two, and he knew he would have to be the one to step forward. He didn't want her to feel like he didn't want to be with her anymore, but he wanted her to understand how he felt when he wad never given the chance to be in control. He wanted them to work together. He had so much built up anger, and he knew that she could feel it. He began to regret yelling at her; he wanted their relationship to last. He loved her more than anything. With his point clear, he hoped that things would only move forward. He couldn't take losing her again.

Nikita watched him reach into his pocket after what seemed like forever. He kept his fist closed after pulling his hand from his pocket and then held her right hand.

"We're in this together, right? Till death do us part," he smiled. She couldn't help but smile back and nod.

"Of course." he leaned in for a kiss, and it reminded both of them how much they missed on another. As he kissed her, he slipped the engagement ring back onto her finger. She looked down at the ring, and felt how much she missed having it there. Another beginning. She felt like he was proposing to her all over again.

She pulled him into a much needed hug and didn't let go. She couldn't help but cry; she couldn't believe she let him out of her life, again.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. He placed his hand on the back of her head.

"I love you."

"You too."


	12. Putting the Pieces Together

**NOTE: FINALLY! I have updated! Soo sorry about the long delay. Thank you for still writing reviews and asking me to update. It kept reminding me that I need to get on it, and it is nice to know that you all are enjoying my story =) I hope you all like the direction the story is taking. I have, for the most part, decided what is going to happen. And I have also edited chapter 11: A New Beginning. I got some reviews making me think that I needed to add more to it. So, i went back and added a little. I don't know if I am completely satisfied with it, but I think still portrays what I want it to. So if you'd like you can go nack and read it! Anyway...enjoy and I will try not to take super long again to update. Thanks for reading! **

Putting the Pieces Together

Alex sat in front of a room full of reporters at a press conference. People were bombarding her with questions about the raid in Berlin.

"Ms. Udinov how did manage to get Bauer behind bars and save so many girls from such a horrible place?"

"Well, I wasn't the person who saved the girls. You can give that credit to the United Nations military who were able to arrest Bauer and get all of the girls out. I also work with an amazing team. They are very motivated and want to do everything in their power to stop human trafficking."

"How did you find information about Bauer and locate his brothel?"

"I'm sorry I can't give out that information, but I can tell yo that I have been through what these girls have been through. I was lucky to get out alive. It was a huge accomplishment for me to be able to help them." She smiled at the flashing lights and mumbling voices in the room. Sometimes being Alexandra Udinov was exhausting; she felt like she was putting on a persona. All she wanted to do at that point was get back to the safe house. Birkhoff had some explaining to do.

* * *

Janet returned to the White House and went back to her normal routine. Her colleagues were constantly asking her questions wondering if she somehow knew the answer to the mystery. She tried to ignore it, and focused on the task at hand. She looked over the president's schedule for the day. He had a lot of meetings. Figures. Everyone was scrambling to figure out what to do. America paranoid about it being another terroristic act and that somehow the terrorists were able to get a mole inside the White House.

Janet took a deep breath before knocking on the door to the Oval Office.

She entered the room and saw President Allen on the phone.

"I won't tell any-what are you doing in here!" He yelled in surprise and hung up the phone. He stood up and fixed his tie.

"Oh sorry Mr. President, I didn't mean to interrupt your conversation, I'm just used to President Sp-I'm trying to get used to the change..." He relaxed and gave her a gentle smile.

"You were one of Spencer's best assistants." Janet let out a nervous laugh.

"Well...thank you, sir."

"Was there something that you wanted to tell me?"

"Yes, you have a meeting with CIA representative Robert Taylor in about three minutes," she told him. _More news on Spencer_.

He nodded and waved her out of the room. She closed the door and got the meeting room set up. Mr. Taylor was already being escorted by secret service to the room. They stood inside the room by the door. Janet unhooked her American Flag pin from her shirt and held it in one hand while greeted Taylor and told him the president was on his way. She saw a manila envelope on the table in front of him with CONFIDENTIAL stamped on the front.

The president came walking into the room and Taylor stood up to greet him.

"Janet you can go on break until I'm finished." Allen said.

"Yes, sir," Janet said and dropped her pin on the floor. She left the room and closed the door behind her. She took a sigh of relief. _I hope they are still listening in_.

* * *

Amanda let Spencer rest for a day until she went down to her cell to wake her up.

"Good morning," Amanda said leaning over her as she slept in a medical bed, a new asset to her bare cell. Spencer squinted and then rubbed her head. She had terrible pain that felt like a migraine. "Good morning President Spencer," Amanda smiled.

"Who knows what time of day it is down here," she said.

"How are you feeling?"

"Hungry, nauseous, and like someone hit me on top of my head."

"I'll have someone bring you something to eat. So, they are still hunting for Nikita," Amanda started. Spencer opened her eyes wide. "What's wrong?"

"Did they get her yet?"

"Unfortunately, no."

"She needs to be locked away. She did so many terrible things." Amanda smirked. Her plan was working.

"She destroyed Division. You liked Division. You were able to do all of the things you needed to so that you could keep everyone safe. But she made it a plan to take that all away from you."

"Where is she?"

"We are going to find out. I have a plan. We'll find her soon and when we do, she will give us back what she took from us," Amanda gave her a cold smile. _It is only a matter of time_.

* * *

Ryan, Birkhoff, Sonya and Alex were in their mini Ops listening in from Janet's pin.

"So far, nothing strange," Birkhoff said.

"Let's just wait. There's got to be something," Ryan said.

"Janet you can go you lunch until the meetings over," they heard President Spencer say.

They could hear the door close but they didn't hear Janet, they heard President Allen and Robert Taylor. Ryan recognized his voice immediately.

"Taylor? What is he doing there?"

"Taylor?" Alex asked. "Who is he?"

"He's an old colleague of mine. One of the many people who told me that I was crazy for believing in the existence of a secret underground government agency."

"So is this something that urgent that I needed to speak with you today?" Allen asked.

"Yes, it's so urgent in fact that I would ask that your security stand outside," Taylor said. Allen paused then looked at his men. He nodded to them for approval, then they left the room. Taylor waited for them to completely close the door before he opened his manila envelope. They could hear papers rustling and then a pause.

"What's this?" Allen said.

"We ran a forensics test on the finger prints found on the gun," Taylor said. "We found three sets of prints. Secret Service agent Serling, now deceased. President Spencer herself, and there is also an unidentified set as well."

"Unidentified?"

"Well, we expected the fingerprints we found to match the woman who we suspect assassinated President Spencer, but she had not come up in the system."

"Well, why not?"

"We are asking ourselves the same question. Only reasonable explanation would be that she hasn't committed any other crimes which seems highly unlikely considering the fact that she was able to do such a serious crime-"

"Check it again," Allen said.

"I'm sorry, sir?"

"Have them run that test again. There is no way that we cannot identify this woman. I want her found."

"Yes, sir...sir? We were trying to come up with possible scenarios of how she could have gotten access to the president. We don't think that she could have done this on her own. The gun belonged to the secret service. She wouldn't have been able to steal a gun without someone catching her. She wouldn't have been able to get into the Oval Office without someone's help...I think that there is someone else who wanted the president dead..."

"You remember when I asked you about Ryan Fletcher? You told me you didn't want him back on the team because all he would do is go on and on about his theories...Well, you sound just like him. I don't want your theories. I want evidence. You have no evidence of what you are saying. The American people want facts, don't give them more fiction, the newspapers and magazines are already doing enough of that." Taylor paused.

"We are still developing the case. I'll let you know if we can find an explanation for this," Taylor said. The President sat back in his chair.

"Make sure your men are working hard. We need to find this woman."

"Yes, sir." The two men shook hands, and left the room.

President Allen went back into his office and picked up his cell phone.

"Hello?" Amanda answered the phone.

"What is the plan?"

"Victor do we have to go over this again?"

"I just had a meeting with Robert Taylor of the CIA. He showed me evidence that Nikita, Serling, and President Spencer herself touched the gun. Now, they are trying to put the pieces together and they may very well succeed and then what? Our plan will be ruined."

"Calm down. Our plan will not be ruined. In fact, let them figure out the story. It'll help. The American people need to know that their President is still alive."

"Why? I thought that wasn't a part of the plan?"

"Plans of changed. We need to meet and discuss."

"I don't think I can. I am constantly under the public eye. I can't be seen meeting with you."

"I'll come to you. Put me on your schedule."

Janet went back into the meeting room, and acted as if she were tidying it up. She picked her pin up from the floor and took a deep breath. If she got caught, she knew that she could be put in jail for the rest of her life, yet for some reason, she trusted Ryan. She knew something was going on, and she wanted to find out what. She closed the door and began walking down the hallway. Her co-worker walked up to her.

"There you are. The President wants to see you." Janet nodded and walked into his office.

"Janet, I need you to put someone on my schedule for tomorrow afternoon."

"Of course. What is their name?" He paused.

"Rebecca Lewis."

"Okay, I will make sure she is on the schedule, but I think, sir, that you already have a meeting scheduled for 1:00."

"How about 12:45? The meeting won't take very long." _A fifteen minute meeting? _She looked at the schedule and added the meeting.

"Okay, it is all set."

"Thank you." Janet left the room. _Rebecca Lewis? _She had never heard that name before. Then again, President Allen may not work with all of the same people that President Spencer worked with. She thought about Ryan. She would need to speak with him soon. She wanted to know what was going on.

* * *

"He is definitely planning something. He is acting strange. I mean, who schedules a fifteen minute meeting?" Birkhoff said.

"I don't know what is going on here, but it seems like he is trying to put all of the focus on catching Nikita and not so much on the connection between the President and Serling," said Ryan.

"Could he be connected to Spencer's assassination somehow?" Sonya suggested. "Serling was working for the Shop...what if Allen is as well?"

"Allen? It is pretty impressive that the Shop got Serling in there, but the Vice President of the United States? That's risky..." Birkhoff said.

"It is risky...but what if it is true?" Ryan said. They stared at him. "Well, the Shop from what we've seen is a large and powerful organization. It is very possible that they have any number of people in the government including someone like the vice president."

"It just sounds next to impossible. I mean come on it is like accusing someone in the White House of being a Nazi or a communist. We don't need another Red Scare," Birkhoff retorted.

"But it is possible and we won't have another Red Scare, because we are going to get things done quietly and discreetly without it becoming a big media frenzy. That's what we do."

"Hm do I smell a whiff of Division? I thought we blew the place up. I don't know about all of this. I mean, I understand that we need to get Amanda so that Nikita will be safe, but something tells me to stay away from the Shop. It is dangerous and we don't have the team or the funds to take them down. I say we get rid of Amanda and then get out. Retire on some island somewhere."

"Seymour," Sonya looked at him. "You know it is true. It is what we do. We get the job done. Yes, Division is gone, but problems still exist. We need to make sure we catch that bitch Amanda so that Michael and Nikita can have their wedding. And if that means we need to take down the Shop in the process, then that is what we need to do." She looked back and forth between Birkhoff and Ryan. "Am I right?"

Ryan couldn't help but smile at Sonya. She was so practical and straightforward. She always did what was right and never complained about it. Birkhoff was even nodding.

"You always know what to say. Love ya, babe," Birkhoff kissed her on the cheek.


	13. Reunited

**NOTE: Hey everyone, here is a little more. This chapter is more about Nikita reestablishing her relationship with her friends and reflecting on the significance of her friends to her life. Also there's some Mikita in this chapter =) I'm working on the next chapter, more coming soon. Thanks for reading! **

Reunited

Nikita lay in the bed next to Michael. She watched him sleep and listened to his heart. It had been a long time since she got the chance to hold him. She held up her hand and stared at the ring on her finger. She felt guilty; she didn't realize how much she missed her ring until Michael unexpectedly put it back on her finger. Most importantly, she couldn't believe that she let him ago once again. _It was like a slap in the face, Nikita_. His words still mingled in her head. She tried not to replay that conversation, but she couldn't get it out of her head. She did feel guilty for leaving him. However, the lingering threat of being in jail for the rest of her life or dead if she ended up in Amanda's hands left her unsure of how long they would have before being torn apart again. Next time it would be for good.

She finally pulled herself out of bed and peeked through the curtains. The early morning sunlight made her squint. She closed the curtains not wanting to wake up Michael, but he was already rubbing his eyes and grunting as he pulled himself up with his right hand. They stared at each other; it had been a while since they had woken up next to one another. Nikita smiled and got back into bed.

"Good morning," she kissed him and touched his cheek.

"Good morning," he smiled back.

"I think I'm going to call room service and order some breakfast. You hungry?" She asked. He sleepily nodded and got up to use the bathroom.

Ten minutes later room service brought them breakfast and they sat on the bed. Nikita sat in silence thinking about everything that she practically beat out of Dominik Bauer. Michael noticed how quiet she was and turned to look at her.

"What are you thinking about?"

"Bauer, he told me something about his connection with the Shop. He sold women to the Shop as test subjects for experiments."

"What?" Michael said in disbelief.

"I know it's completely inhumane. He said Karl Jaeger wanted a girl with blond hair who could speak English and had a specific build."

"Did he say why?"

"It was for Amanda." Michael looked at her in shock.

"Amanda?"

"The girl was sent to the United States. I tried to get him to tell me where in the U.S. but I didn't have the chance to." Michael frowned and stared off trying to understand what was going on.

"We need to find Amanda and we need to find out what happened to the girl," Nikita said. "We should head back to the states as soon as possible."

"Of course..." Michael said and sighed.

"What's wrong?"

"I guess I was hoping we could spend some time together..." Nikita didn't know what to say. She wanted to spend time with him, but she knew that they couldn't waste any time. They needed to figure out Amanda's plan now so that they could find her and stop her from carrying out any other plans that would only hurt more people.

Nikita leaned over and kissed him.

"I want to spend time with you too." She began to kiss him again, but was interrupted by one of their cell phones. They both reached for their phones. Michael picked up and heard Birkhoff on the other end.

"Mikey, we need you back here. We have a lot to talk about."

"Is Alex back?"

"Yeah she just finished her press conference."

"Alright, I'll head back."

"...you bringing Niki?" Michael paused a looked over at her. "I'll call you back when I land." He hung up and looked at her.

"Are you coming home?" She sat quietly staring at him trying to decide whether or not to say "yes." She wanted to go back and see everyone, but she was also thinking about why she left in the first place. _There's always that chance that she will find me_. She was worried about Amanda, but she shook the thoughts out of her head. Even though she had unfinished business with Amanda, it wasn't going to stop her from being with her friends, her family. She smiled at him and nodded.

"Yes." She saw his face light up and the greatest smile that she'd seen in a while. He gave her another kiss and hugged her. Nikita had butterflies in her stomach; she had a lot of explaining to do when she returned home.

* * *

Nikita, Michael, and Sam drove to the hideout. Nikita was surprised that Sam wanted to come. She warned him that everyone wouldn't be very happy to see him, but he decided he would go in and try to make amends. He wanted to help out; he had unfinished business with Amanda like everyone else.

They walked in and were greeted by Alex, Ryan, Sonya, and Birkhoff. The four of them stared in disbelief of their eyes. Nikita was back, and she returned with Michael and brought Sam with her who they hadn't seen since the G-20. Without a word Alex, still dressed in her skirt suit ran up and hugged Nikita.

Nikita relaxed a little. It felt great to know that all of the built up emotions floating in the room weren't hostile. In fact, she learned that none of them were. RyanI was the first to speak.

"Nikita..." He said with a sigh. "I'm so glad you are okay."

"Niki," Birkhoff said. "I knew you'd be back." Nikita couldn't help but smile.

"All thanks to you, Nerd."

"We're glad you are back. It wasn't the same without you." Sonya said.

"Thanks Sonya." Nikita looked at everyone and tried her best to speak.

"I know all of you have been trying to find me. After being framed for President Spencer's death, I made a rash decision to leave. I want you all to know that it wasn't my intention to make you worry or feel like I didn't care about any of you. Truth is, I care a lot, and all I wanted was for all of you to be safe. I didn't want my mess to become yours. You all know and have witnessed and felt Amanda's wrath. She is relentless, and if she was able to frame me who knows what lengths she is willing to go to now to find me and make her plan work. She has already done so much to try and tear us apart, and yet somehow we make our way back home. Well, I'm back home, and this time I'm not going anywhere. I love you guys and I'm sorry for everything. I appreciate all that you have done to try and find me and I thank you for trying to find Amanda. Now, I want us all to work together to find her so we can all move on and have the lives that we want to have."

Everyone stood smiling at Nikita as she spoke. It wasn't hard for them to accept her apology. They knew that she meant it, and all they wanted was for her to be safe and come home. Now, they had her back, and it was time to get back to work.

After Nikita finished speaking Sam stepped up from behind. He had been standing near the door trying to do get any attention. After the way Michael reacted to seeing him in Berlin, Sam knew that the rest of them wouldn't be very happy to see him. He saw all of the smile disappear from their faces.

"I know what you are all thinking: 'what the hell is he doing here?' The last time you all saw me was at the G-20 when I was trying to sell the black box. As you know, Amanda helped me sell it-or pretended to anyway. I destroyed the last black box, as you know, and I had decided to leave you all alone after that. Then, Nikita unexpectedly showed up at my place and convinced me to help you all. I know you remember Owen, the nice guy. Sam seems like a jerk, but Sam remembers Owen as well. I'm still in ways the guy you all once knew, and I want to help you. I'm sorry for everything and I know I don't deserve your trust, but I'm hoping to earn it." They all stood quietly and then watched as Birkhoff walked up and shook Sam's hand.

"Glad you are on board, but just to let you know, I'm not letting you near the gun supply." Birkhoff said remembering when Sam put a gun to his head and forced him to help him escape from Division.

"Fair enough," Sam said.

"Yeah, thanks for helping Sam," Ryan smiled.

"Alright, lets get back to work, shall we?" Alex said to everyone.

"I think we deserve a break for the night. Unless you guys would rather work, I think we can start back up bright and early tomorrow morning." Ryan suggested.

"Amen to that, brother," Birkhoff said waving his xbox controller in the air. "Alright I'm going to beat you this time." He said to Sonya. Everyone went off to their rooms. Ryan showed Sam where one of the spare rooms were. Nikita walked over to Birkhoff.

"I don't want to interrupt your game Birkhoff, but I just wanted to thank you for everything you did. If it wasn't for you I don't know if I would have come back." Birkhoff had paused the game and was looking up at her.

"You know I have you back Niki, always." Nikita gave him a hug and then went upstairs. She knocked on Alex's bedroom door. When she opened the door, she was already in her pajamas with her hair up in a bun.

* * *

Michael walked to the end of the hall where Sam was now staying. He had his door open so Michael knock on the open door to get Sam's attention. Sam looked up and paused when he saw Michael standing there. He had his guard on around Michael; he knew Michael never really liked him that much to begin with.

"Come in," Sam said. Michael took a few steps into the room.

"I don't want to bother you, I actually just wanted to thank you." Michael said.

"For what?"

"For having Nikita's back while she was with you in Montreal." Sam was shocked to hear this coming from Michael. Michael never gave him any praise let alone thank him.

"Of course, Michael. I have Nikita's back. I told you back at Division that as Nikita's new partner I would have her back. Well, I still do Division or no Division. Like I said, I know I hadn't been acting like it, but I think I just needed a reality check. Family comes first." Michael nodded, gave Sam a little smile and left the room. He liked Sam a little more now.

* * *

"I'm just happy that you are safe," Alex said as she sat on her bed across from Nikita.

"I'm just so happy to be back. I really missed all of you."

"We missed you too. Michael definitely took it the hardest though. Birkhoff and Sonya were working to get Shadow Net up and running so that we could track you. That's all Michael cared about. That's when Birkhoff contacted you without telling Michael and conjured up his plan to get you both in Berlin which I didn't find out about until the day of the raid. I am impressed," She chuckled.

"Yeah...I thought I was dreaming when I saw Michael there."

"I wish I could have been there too. This whole diplomat Alexandra Udinov role is...it can be a lot for me to handle sometimes. I have to make sure I do the right things, say the right things. I can't even go out on missions with you anymore."

"Honestly, I think this works a lot better for you. Because of you, over one hundred girls were released from prison. Those girls were living in small rooms, locked up until someone wanted to use them. Now, they are free. That was all you. It's what you are supposed to do, help girls like you."

"You sound like Maryam Hasan."

"But it's true. I think if you embrace Alexandra Udinov, you'll find out that she is Alex."

"I used to have nightmares about becoming Alexandra Udinov. Like that name belongs to a different girl. The Udinov name haunts me. It comes with a lot of expectations and assumptions and...responsibility that I don't know I want or can handle."

"Alex, when I met you, you were addicted to drugs ready to give up on everything. Then, you made it through and now you've become the strong person that you've always been. Trust me, you can deal with the new challenges of being a celebrity." Nikita smiled. Alex laughed.

"I don't want to lose you all in the process."

"That won't happen. You'll always be my sister." They both gave each other hugs. Nikita remembered why family was so important to her, it gave her something to live for. She was glad to be back with her family; she needed them as much as they needed her.

She walked to her room and saw Michael already getting ready for bed. She climbed into the bed and got as close to him as she could. He moved her hair out of her face and put his arm around her.

"I missed you."

"I missed you too. I'm glad to be home." He smiled at her and closed her eyes. "Michael?"

"Hm?"

"No matter what happens...from this point forward I want you to know that I love you and I can't wait until things change for us."

"It's going to be hard for a while, but it'll get better. We are still having our wedding, I promise you that." He kissed her on the forehead. "I love you." Nikita closed her eyes and smiled feeling hopeful about her future with Michael again as she finally dozed off to sleep.


	14. Anya

**NOTE: Here is the next installment! I was hoping not to take so long to update this time, but I unfortunately I have been so busy! Well, I hope you all like this. =) More coming soon and as always tell me what you think! Thanks for reading! **

Anya

Everyone crowded around Birkhoff and Sonya's mini Ops and began briefing one another. Alex talked about the press conference, Ryan talked about Janet helping them out and the President's conversation with Taylor and his strange fifteen minutes meeting with a woman named Rebecca Lewis. Nikita explained to everyone the information she received from Bauer. Sam sat back and soaked everything in.

"I'm going see if Janet is able to let us listen into the meeting President Allen has today," Ryan said.

"We definitely need to know who Rebecca Lewis is," Michael said.

"We also need to find out where Bauer sent the girl. If we find her, we find Amanda," Nikita told everyone.

"But how do we do that?" Sonya asked. Nikita thought back to the conversation she had with Bauer.

"Bauer said that he was told by Jaeger to give the girl away for free and that he would be paid later...do you think you can hack into Bauer's accounts, Birkhoff? Maybe there is evidence of a money transfer?"

"I'll check it out."

"There is a girl who was rescued during the raid that has been getting a lot of attention from the press. If we talk to her, we can find out if she knows something," Alex suggested. Sonya began searching the news.

"Analisa...Kaufmann. 22 years old. She was solicited into prostitution when she was sixteen, she says. She is currently in the States doing interviews," Sonya said and looked up at Alex.

"Looks like she is getting a call from Alexandra," Alex said and turned to look at the TV. Analisa was on a morning talk show. Alex walked away to make some calls.

"I found Bauer's account. There is a steady flow of money coming from the same place in Germany," Birkhoff said.

"That's probably where the Shop facility is that the girls were being transferred to. Anything jump out at you?" Nikita asked. Birkhoff scrolled down until he came across one money transfer from an account in the States.

"This one has a note. It just says Anya," Birkhoff said.

"That must be her. It was sent to him days ago. If we can track that transfer maybe we can track down Amanda."

"On it."

While Birkhoff worked on hacking into Bauer's bank account, Alex made some phone calls to set up an interview with Anya. She was eager to ask her questions, but then she realized that she would have to do a public interview.

"It would be great for her to sit down and talk to Alexandra Udinov!" Maryam said. _Great_.

"Good news: I was able to get an interview with Analisa. Bad news: it's a TV interview. I won't be able to ask her about Anya." Michael put his hand on his chin the way he usually did when he was thinking.

"We already got passed the hard part. When you are done interviewing her, Nikita and I can follow her and ask her questions."

"What should we be: FBI? CIA?...FBI." Nikita concluded on her own.

"Perfect," Alex smiled though her smile quickly faded. "Too bad I can't talk to her about it myself."

"Without you they wouldn't have access to Analisa. You're doing your part, Alex," Sam chimed in after sitting back watching everyone come up with plans and strategies. Michael and Nikita looked at Sam remembering that he was there. Even as Owen, he never said anything unless it was necessary. Alex smiled at him.

"Thanks Sam." He gave a small smile and then looked at Nikita and Michael.

"So, I guess I should sit this one out, huh? Let you two go out in the field like old times. I'll be watching just in case you need backup" he said with hint of annoyance in his voice. Without giving them a chance to respond he walked away.

"So, after the interview with Analisa we will have to find the right opportunity to stop her as and as her questions. We'll have Birkhoff keep an eye on her whereabouts."

"How?" Alex asked. Nikita paused trying to think of a way to keep track of Analisa.

"Put a tracker on her," she said nonchalantly.

"What? How would we do that?" Michael asked.

"Alex can do it during the interview."

"What?" Alex said in shock. "What do you mean?"

"At Division we had trackers that were so small they could go completely unnoticed by the person being tracked. All you'd have to do is find a way to get in close contact with her. You can stick it almost anywhere."

"I will be on _live _television."

"I know, but if we want to find out more information about Anya, we are going to need you to do this."

"Are you sure that is safe, Nikita?" Michael asked feeling unsure of the plan.

"It is up to you Alex whether you want to do it or not. This is not Division. You don't _have _to do anything. It would just make things easier." Nikita said. Alex now felt more nervous than ever. One little mistake could expose not only the real Alexandra Udinov, but her friends as well. She couldn't have that happen.

* * *

Alex went into a studio to do a live interview on the news. She was in her dressing room when someone knocked on her door.

"Come in!" Alex yelled.

"Ms. Udinov. We are ready when you are."

"I'm ready now," Alex said and got out of her chair. _It's show time. _Alex knew what she had to do. She walked out onto a stage set up to look like an upscale house with white carpet and white chairs to match. She sat down across from Analisa. She was very skinny, had dark brown hair with blonde highlights, and a nose piercing. Alex watched her, her movements, her posture. She was checking to see if the girl was hooked to any drugs. She could tell that from a mile away, but this girl seemed to be clean. However, Alex could see the pain in her eyes. She had been through a lot even though she was only 22 years weren't very different from one another.

She got the cue from the director to start.

"Analisa Kauffman. Can I just start by saying it is a pleasure to meet you and have the opportunity to speak with you. I know you have been through a lot these past couple of weeks. I want to commend you for having the courage to speak and thank you for sharing your story."

"Thank you very much Ms. Udinov. That is a lot coming from you. You are like my idol," Analisa said with a strong accent. "You encouraged me to speak out."

"I'm happy to hear that. So, can you tell me about the day you escaped from Dominik Bauer's brothel?"

"Well, it started as any normal day. We got dressed, ate, and then waited for clients to come. I never takes very long. This day was a little different. It was slower, not as many men came. Then, all of a sudden we see people with guns walking through and they tell us they do not want to hurt us, they want Bauer. Next thing I know, I am being taken away and I never looked back."

"It must have been an amazing feeling."

"It was. I am one of the lucky ones who got out of that terrible life." Alex thought about the girl who tried to fly off of the rooftop. Some girls never make it out.

"I understand. I've lost friends too." She watched Analisa clutch at her necklace.

"That is beautiful," Alex said.

"It was my friend's. Her name was Anya." Alex's heart sunk when she heard that name. Then she remembered what Nikita asked her to do.

"Can I see it?" Analisa nodded and Alex got up and took a close look at the necklace. The necklace was of a purple and green butterfly with golden trim on a golden chain. Alex let the necklace shine in the light and was able to place the tracker onto the back on the necklace with her pointer finger.

"It is beautiful," She said and sat down. "I love butterflies. They represent change. A second chance at a new life."

"You're right. That's why I wear it everyday, to remind me of that second life."

* * *

"Alex was able to put the tracker on Analisa," Birkhoff told Nikita and Michael as they sat in their car waiting for the signal.

"I knew she could do it," Nikita smiled.

"Now, all we do is wait until the interview is over," Michael said. "You know...I think what Alex is doing is great. She has done so much already through the UN to help in the effort to stop human trafficking. She's really made a name for herself."

"Yeah...I'm proud of her." Nikita looked at Michael and smiled. She forgot what it felt like to have him there with her.

"I just wanted to say, Michael, that I am glad you are here with me. It feels like old times."

"It does, doesn't it?" He smiled. "We made it through a lot," he said while looking at his right hand. "It is a big motivation to know that once all of this is over, we can finally do everything we've wanted to do and be happy." Nikita smiled and leaned over to kiss him.

"Can't wait."

Once the interview was over, they waited for Analisa to leave the studio.

"Birkhoff do you see where she is going?" Nikita asked.

"Yes, sending coordinates to your system navigator now," Birkhoff told her. They began following her route. They saw that she stopped and went into a hotel.

"Perfect timing. Let's go." Nikita said to Michael. They both got out of their car and went into the hotel. They were dressed in suits. Nikita had on glasses with her hair pulled back. They walked up to the concierge and the man behind the desk looked up at them with curiosity in his eyes.

"Can I help you?" He said professionally.

"Yes. My name is Jane and this is David. We are from the Federal Bureau of Investigations," they both showed their badges at the same time. "And we would like to speak to Analisa Kaufmann. We have very important information to share with her." The man looked between the two of them unsure what to do.

"We will only be a few minutes," Michael added.

"I'll call her now to see is she is available," he said and picked up his phone. "Yes...Ms. Kaufmann? Yes, hello, how are you? Great. Uh-I have two agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigations here to see you...uh yes...okay should I send them up? Okay, thank you." He looked up at them. "She will see you now. Please take the elevator to room 504." The two of them nodded and got into the elevator.

They knocked on the door and waited for an answer. Analisa opened the door still in the same clothes from the TV interview.

"Hello. Please come in." They stepped into the cozy hotel room and decided to stand by the window.

"Hello Ms. Kaurfmann, sorry to bother you. We just wanted to talk to you about Dominik Bauer...and one of the girls that lived in the brothel," Michael said.

"I'm surprised. I already talked to the police in Germany. I didn't know American cops were involved as well."

"Yes, well, Bauer was doing business with people in America that we are currently investigating."

"Okay, so what do you want to know?"  
"We don't want to waste your time. First, can you describe to us your experience living in Dominik Bauer's brothel?" Nikita asked. Analisa let out a sigh and stared off at the wall behind Nikita and Michael.

"Well, we were all happy to get out. Living there wasn't the best years of my life, I can tell you that. I started when I was sixteen. A man asked me if I wanted to help make money for my family. At the time we were living in a shelter, my mother, my younger sister and I. My father had died the year before. He made it sound like it could save my life; it did the exact opposite. I was on drugs, being yelled at when I wasn't bringing in enough money, and I don't ever remember touching a dime of what I earned," she let out a scoff. "It is amazing how people can manipulate you."

"Do you remember a girl named Anya?"

Analisa looked up at them.

"Anya...she was my best friend. Why do you want to know about Anya?"

"She went missing," Michael started. "We are trying to find out what happened to her." Analisa sighed.

"Anya was taken away. Anya...she came in about a year after me. She was very smart. She went to college. She spoke fluent German, Russian, and English. She just went through some bad times in her life that she never liked to talk about much and then she ended up in Bauer's hands."

"When did she disappear?"

"Well, she didn't really disappear. She was told that she was going to be taken to America to work. Bauer said that she was specially chosen. We were all surprised. Most girls are sent somewhere else in Germany. None of us really understood why. Bauer just said that it was 'for experiments.' We were always working hard to have a lot of clients, because the girls who didn't make a lot of money were always the first that were sent off..."

"Why do you think they chose Anya to go to America?"

"I think they had special work for her. She was very smart and very beautiful."

"What did Anya look like?" Nikita asked.

"Tall, slender figure, blond hair...she was a beautiful girl," Analisa said. Nikita thought for a moment trying to figure out what Amanda could possibly have been planning.

"Thank you so much for your time Ms. Kaufmann. We really appreciate all of your information," She said to Analisa. Michael and Niktia got up and walked to the door.

"If you find out anything about Anya, please contact me," Analisa said.

"We will...I promise," Nikita said and smiled.

* * *

Everyone stood in Ops and listened to the information Nikita and Michael received from Analisa.

"I don't know if speaking to Analisa got us anywhere..." Michael said.

"I feel like we are headed in the right direction, but we just haven't put it all together," Alex said.

"What would Amanda want with a woman stuck in prostitution?" Sonya asked.

"Who knows what kind of experiments she is doing," Sam scoffed. _Experiments._ Nikita dozed off as thoughts swarmed to her. _Anya, tall, blond, Bauer, experiment, the Shop, cloning, prosthesis. Kosta Beciraj...Michael's hand._

"Nikita...Nikita..." Michael was saying. She focused her vision on Michael then looked around at everyone.

"President Spencer isn't dead," she said to everyone after coming to her own conclusion. They all stared at her in disbelief. They had no clue what Nikita could have been thinking now, but they were all hesitant to find out. Figuring out Amanda's plan was like standing over a deep pool that they all really didn't want to dive into.


	15. Getting Closer

**NOTE: Quick update this time! Rainy days and good music are awesome for writing. I'm bringing in a new element in this chapter (you'll know what it is when you read =)). I hope you guys like it. I felt like it could work, because I caught whiff of it in season 3. Anyway you guys are great! Thanks so much for the comments! I'm glad this story is like a possible season 4, that was my goal. Let me know what you all think of this chapter. Thanks! **

Getting Closer

"What?" Ryan huffed in disbelief.

"Niki, you sure you aren't on crazy medicine right now, because you sound a little nuts."

"That's a pretty big statement considering that President Spencer shot herself right in front of you," Sonya said.

"President Spencer is still alive, because Anya is dead. I figured out Amanda's plan..."

* * *

Amanda was escorted into a meeting room in the White House were she was going to meet with President Allen.

"Hello, Victor," everyone heard from Birkhoff's computer that was still streaming the audio from Janet's pin.

"Amanda," Nikita said with resentment.

"Why am I not surprised?" Birkhoff said. "Dragon lady is trying to dig her claws deeper into democracy. Since when has she become friends with Allen?"

"I don't know, but that's definitely not good. That woman does not need anymore power," Sam said.

"This explains why Allen was avoiding contacting the CIA about me working with them. He is working with Amanda," Ryan said.

"Great, we have the Shop in the United Stated Government. At the rate things are going, we might not even have a world to save," Birkhoff shook his head.

* * *

"This is a very short meeting," Allen said.

"I know I just wanted to talk to you about a couple of things. Things that I do not want to talk with you about over the phone."

"I see...well?"

"We still have to move on with our plan. I just made a small change, is all."

"What kind of change?"

"Well, as you know, catching Nikita is apart of the plan. I am going to use oure lovely president as bait. She is fully under my control, now."

"Once she finds out Spencer is still alive, she is bound to come looking for you."

"That's exactly what I want. I am just waiting for her to find out..." Amanda paused and took a phone call. "Yes..."

"You need to get back here now."

"What is the problem?"

"Analisa did an interview with Alexandra Udinov, and I have her being sent to the office as we speak. You know that means that-"

"Nikita found out about the President. Perfect." Amanda hung up her phone. She dialed a number.

"Yes?"

"Did you meet Nikita?

"Yes, I answered all of her questions about Anya. She wants to find her."

"Great job. You did exactly what I wanted."

"I want to know where Anya is. That was the deal...will you tell me now?"

"There was no deal sweetheart. I lodged a kill chip in your brain stem, but since I told you I would provide you with that information, fine. She's dead."

"What?"

"Now you know, goodbye."

"Wait-this chip, kill chip, you called it. Can you take it out of me...I don't want to die..."

"When I get Nikita, I'll remove your kill chip." She hung up.

"Now, we can move to the next step, Victor. Expect to hear from me soon. When the time comes...you know what to do."

"Yes."

* * *

"So, Amanda has President Spencer," Michael said.

"This is a mess..." Ryan said and rubbed his rubbed his eyes.

"She knows you are going to come looking for her," Alex said to Nikita.

"Good. Let the bitch prepare. I'm coming to get her, and this time I'm not holding back. I've been waiting forever. She deserves what is coming to her."

"Nikita, you know that this is a trap. She is going to put you right where she wants you," Michael said.

"I know."

"Wh-"

"Let Amanda make her plans. We can all show her who she is messing with. It's time to stop running and face her," Sam said. Michael turned around to look at him.

"Says the guy who was used as Amanda's pawn to get the black box."

"What did you say?"

"You heard me. That is what you are always used as, a pawn. With Percy, Amanda..."

"You know what-" Sam started and began to walk towards Michael. Alex stood between the two men.

"Alright," she said in a low tone. "That's enough." Sam huffed and backed away still glaring at Michael. There was an awkward air in the room until Ryan spoke up.

"Bottom line is: Amanda set a trap and is waiting for us to walk right into it. We have to figure out what her plan is and a way to evade it."

"I can tell you what it is," Nikita started. "We know that she wanted to me to go to the oval office and give Spencer the gun. She knew that I didn't want to do it. She planned for Spencer to shoot herself-or Anya. It was Anya, not Spencer."

"How-how was she able to have Anya portray the president?" Alex asked.

"Biogenetics. Michael's hand, a bioprosthesis, Kosta's leg, carbon fiber bone. They found ways to use DNA to recreate body parts. See that's why I told you to stay away..." Birkhoff shook his head.

"They must have got a hold of the president's DNA somehow and recreated her. Think about it. Bauer told me that Amanda had been looking for a specific girl with a specific look. Then, she must have tampered with her brain, just like she did with Alex and with Sam. Then, she used her to frame me."

"That's...just horrible," Sonya sighed.

"So President Spencer is Amanda's hostage," Michael said.

"And guinea pig," Birkhoff added.

"We've got to find her," Alex said.

"Like I said before: It is a trap. We go snooping around for Amanda's lair, we don't know what we are going to find, and I don't want to run into another escapade like the one we were just in," Michael said.

"Michael, we have to do this," Nikita walked up to him. "We have to stop her."

"No, we don't. Why not just leave while we have the chance. Do you all realize what we are running into?"

"Michael, there is no point in running away, now. We've got to finish this. Especially now that we are all together as a team," Ryan said.

"Michael, I know that you are worried, but we can't run from this. I want to be free and as long as she is out there, we never will be." Michael looked at her in silence, his face frowned.

"I'm getting some air," he said and briskly walked out the front door. They watched him leave and then looked at Nikita. She tried not to let herself get too upset. It would only make things worse.

"Okay, why don't we take a break. We need to come up with a strategy. Maybe everyone can think of something, and we can see what we all have come up with later on," Nikita tried to smile at everyone, then she went up the stairs to her room.

* * *

Alex walked up the stairs and passed Nikita door. She paused in the hallway debating on whether or not to talk to Nikita. As she stood there contemplating, she felt someone walk up behind her and turned around. It was Sam.

"You should leave her alone. I think she needs time to herself right now," He spoke in a low voice so Nikita didn't hear him. Alex paused wondering if she should take his advice. She realized that Nikita was having a hard time, and knew how her friend functioned. She definitely needed some time to herself for the moment.

Sam watched her expressions. He could tell she was having mixed emotions. The constant twitch between her eyebrows, the fluttering of her eye lids and the movement of her eyes in search for an answer. Finally, she looked up at him, nodded, then continued to walk towards her room. Sam had followed behind to go to his room. He went into his room and stood there staring at the wall, thoughts racing in his head. He remembered the last time he had spoken to Alex. It was at the G-20. He was planning to sell the black box in exchange for enough money to relax on a beach somewhere for the rest of his life. Screw all of this Division bullshit. Alex tried reasoning with him to "do the right thing" and end this now. _Tsh...yeah right_, he thought. Then, he found out that Sean was dead, he missed a lot. He remembered the look on her face when he asked her if it was true. She looked down trying to hold in the tears. She reminded him of how much he still missed Emily, and as much as he tried to get over it, he couldn't. His years as Owen were actually some of the best he had when Emily was around, but he lied to Alex.

_"Yeah, I lost ten years of my life."_

_"It wasn't just a loss, you gained as well. You have us. I care about you," _she told him with her sincere eyes.

He couldn't help but get lost in them. However, he had to protect himself. He walked away that day. He was a jerk to everyone. He turned his back on everyone and now they were accepting him back. He owed all of them. He owed Alex.

He walked up to her door and softly knocked. He pressed his ear to the door, and heard sniffling. _She's crying? _He stepped back when he heard the knob twist and she stood there looking up at him.

"Yeah?"

"I just wanted to say-I wanted to...can I come in?"

Alex looked at Sam with curious eyes. She never saw Owen-or Sam go out of his way to speak to someone before, ever. And if he did have something to say, he never held back. The fact that he couldn't get it out surprised her. _What did he want to say?_

She had been staring at him, and she could tell that he was getting uncomfortable.

"Come in," she cleared her throat and opened her door for him. She closed the door and turned around with her arms folded.

"I'm...sorry, did I interrupt something?"

"No...no, I'm fine. What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong. I just wanted to talk to you about the G-20."

"What about it?"

"I said some things to you that weren't okay. I wanted to tell you that I apologize and that I appreciate that you and everyone are willing to work with me now after everything."

"It's okay. That's what friends do." She walked over to her bed and sat down.

"Is that all you wanted to talk about?" He wasn't sure if he should continue. He wanted to say something to her, something he wasn't sure was right. He just didn't know how she would react.

"You told me that you care about me," she looked up at him. "I told you that it was a mistake. I was protecting myself. Truth is...I care about you too and I know that you are hurting."

"What are you talking about-"

"You know what I'm talking about, Alex. I've been through the same thing. I've lost someone that I love too." She paused, then got up and walked over to the window.

"I don't want to talk about this anymore."

"A-Alex. Come on. Have you even had the chance to talk about it? Have you talked to Nikita about it? You can't keep it in forever. It's going to eat you alive. Trust me, I was a wreck."

"How is talking about it going to help!" She turned around with tears streaming down her face. It caught him off guard, but he understood her well. All too well. "Sean is dead and it's my fault. If I hadn't caused all of that trouble at Division and he tried-he tried to talk me out of it many times, but I just...damn it," she tried to wipe away her tears and then she turned away from Sam. Sam slowly walked towards her and stood across from her. She wouldn't look at him, so he lifted her face up and wiped her face with his thumb.

"It's not you fault. It's not."

"Sam, it was my fault."

"It was Amanda."

"And I let her get to me, control me. I hurt everyone I love and lost him in the process, because I couldn't let go of the fact that I always survive and everyone else around me dies. My father, Larissa, everyone. Why do I get to live?" _Survivors guilt. We are like the same person..._Sam thought as he remembered the guilt he felt when Emily died.

"Now, I am by myself. I had a great person by my side, and I lost him. You know, I look at Nikita and Michael and sometimes I just want to tell them to work through their differences and never walk away from one another. They do not know how lucky they are to have each other. They have no idea..."

"I know..." Sam said. She looked up at him and he couldn't help but smile at her. He pulled her into a hug and held her tight so she wouldn't feel so alone. He didn't know what was happening, but he didn't want to let her go. He tried to ignore it before, but he always liked being around Alex. When he went on a mission with her, and she told him about her tattoo, it felt nice to have someone to talk to. He knew then that he cared about her, a lot. But there was Pierce, Amanda, and the mess of their lives that they had to deal with. He couldn't make it more complicated, and he knew that she loved Sean. But now, it only seemed right.

_Screw third wheel_.

Alex held onto Sam and felt more relaxed and safe. She didn't know what was happening, why she was confiding in him, why he was trying to comfort her but she needed it. She hadn't told anyone how she felt, not even Nikita. Nikita had told her that she needed to stop running away from her past. With Sam, she didn't need to do that. Somehow, with Sam, she could let her guard down. She knew he wasn't just saying that he understood, he did

She felt him pull away and she looked up at him. Then, he leaned in to kiss her. She was so shocked, but at the same time didn't want to let go. She felt safe, but she pulled away when she began to think about Sean.

"I'm sorry, Alex," Sam sighed. "I don't know what I was thinking..." She turned away from him and wiped the rest of the tears from her eyes.

"I can't..." She said.

"I understand," he nodded. "I'm sorry." He began to walk towards her door to leave. She watched him and suddenly felt lonely again. She knew that as soon as he walked out the room, her thoughts would come racing back. "_You have to start to heal _yourself_," _Nikita told her.

She realized how much she enjoyed his company. He never made her feel guilty or treated her differently because of her mistakes or who she was or ever had been. He just treated her like a friend, like Alex; she needed that.

"Wait," he turned around. She walked up to him and kissed him.


	16. Irreconcilable Differences

**NOTE: Here is a little more! So glad everyone liked the last chapter. I think Alex and Sam/Owen will be great together. More coming soon =) Thanks for reading and thanks for the comments! **

Irreconcilable Differences

Alex and Sam sat on the edge of her bed.

"So, what do you think we should do about finding President Spencer?" Alex asked him.

"It's definitely risky. Amanda has a whole organization behind her that devotes its time to toying with the human brain and body. Right up her alley," he huffed. "I think Nikita is right. I think we should go in, guns blazing, grab Spencer, and shoot Amanda."

"Oh, but you know it won't be that easy," she smiled.

"If only..."

"I think before storming the place, we need to check it out, find out exactly where she is keeping Spencer, and come up with a way to go in quietly. Spencer is her only leverage, so once we get the president out safely, we can deal with Amanda."

"The question is: how? I'm sure Amanda has her caged up in some facility. I wouldn't be surprised if she has already began to dig around in Spencer's brain. She's already gotten a hold of pretty much all of us. I'm sure she got a kick out of having the United States President in her possession."

"Whatever we all decide to do, you should go on the mission."

"Eh...maybe."

"Why didn't you go with Michael and Nikita when they went to talk to Analisa?"

"Michael, he has always had it out for me. He thinks I can't handle myself in the field and only leave a mess to clean up. He doesn't trust me and, I don't know, maybe he shouldn't. I did attack Tasarov and knocked him out when they needed to talk to him. My luck. Now, he hates me, and he lets me know it. You heard him. I'm just going to stay out of the way, let those two love birds go."

"I think you should be there. Nikita cares about you, and she trusts you by her side during missions. And this mission is going to be the final mission. Against Amanda. Another person out there to watch her back is probably what she needs."

"Yeah..." he sighed. "I guess you are right. But I'll only go under one condition: I talk to Amanda."

"Why?"

"I want to know if she did something to me. I mean, I know she did something to me. But sometimes I feel conflicted. I feel like Sam, then I feel like Owen."

"Maybe...Sam is Owen and Owen is Sam. She just split them up and gave them different names, made you feel like you were a different person, but you've been the same this whole time."

"She definitely left out a part of the equation..."

"We'll find out," she said and touched his shoulder." She got up. "We should go back downstairs." He nodded and walked to the door. "And Sam, I think you should talk to Michael."

"Yeah..." he reluctantly agreed.

"I'll meet you down there." He nodded and walked out of the room. He saw Nikita open her door as he was closing Alex's. She turned around when she heard the door shut and was surprised to see him.

"Sam? Were you just in-"

"We were talking. She's been going through a lot. Losing Pierce...have you talked to her?"

"Wh-No, well I, yeah. Once, but she seemed fine lately. She hasn't said anything..."

"Nikita, you and I both know what she is going through. How many people did you just outright talk to? She's really upset. Guilt, it eats you alive. You should talk to her." Nikita stood there trying to figure out how she hadn't noticed. Then, she remembered. She hadn't even been around to notice anything. She had been too involved in all the mess with Amanda that it clouded her vision. Once again, Amanda was able to stand in the way. It was going to stop. She shook her head.

"I'll talk to her."

They went downstairs and noticed the smell of food which lured them into the kitchen. They saw that Ryan was talking with Sonya and Birkhoff at the island in the kitchen.

"That smells delicious," Nikita said. "Sonya did you cook?"

"Yes, I did. Spaghetti. It's simple, but I thought we could all use a home cooked meal."

"Amen to that," Sam said.

"Hey, Niki, why did you just assume it was Sonya who cooked. That's pretty sexist, yeah? Why couldn't I have been the one with the apron?" Nikita burst into laughter.

"You're funny, Nerd. You? In the kitchen? I'd expect as much as ramen noodles from you. Ryan? I'm sure you survive off of microwave dinners."

"No I'm sure Ryan can cook. Defend us guys here," Birkhoff said.

"I can whip together a sandwich," Ryan tried to defend himself.

"What PB&J?" Sonya laughed. Nikita started laughing again.

"What about you, Sam?" Birkhoff asked.

"Hey, don't look at me," Sam chuckled. Birkhoff grunted.

"Face it Seymour there are some things you aren't good at," Sonya said. Alex walked into the room.

"Mm, smells great, can I have some?"

They all got the chance to eat, talk, and relax. They knew that they had work to do, but they all needed a break. It felt nice to spend time with one another. It wasn't often that they were all together. Michael walked back in and saw everyone standing around talking. They all felt the awkward air between Nikita and Michael. Most of them had finished eating so they cleaned up and then went to mini Ops. Michael stood on the opposite side of the island from Nikita as she leaned against the kitchen countertop.

"Hungry?" She asked.

"A little."

"I'll make you a plate. Sonya made it. Delicious," she made him a plate and sat it on the island. She watched him begin to eat in silence. She didn't want to avoid the conversation anymore.

"Michael, I understand where you are coming from, but hear me out. Amanda has the President of the United States. We need to save her. If we don't, Amanda could use the president as leverage to get what she wants from the government. Once that happens, she'll be uncontrollable. We already know that Allen is another one of Amanda's guinea pigs which means she has access to the most powerful place in government. Who knows what she is going to do with that..." She waited for him to say something but he didn't. "Michael?"

He looked up and noticed the look on her face. She was as scared and unsure as he was. He knew that facing Amanda was unavoidable, but he was hoping that somehow they'd find a better way to deal with it. Nikita was Amanda's target. The fact that they were going to go after the woman who had it out for them from the beginning scared him. He just got Nikita back again, what was he going to do if something went wrong. Yet, he couldn't worry. They risked their lives everyday. It was there job, and Nikita did a damned good job.

"I love you, and I understand," he started. She smiled. "But, I don't think attacking Amanda head on is the best option that we have. If we do that, there is too much risk. I understand how much you want to get her, but you will risk losing. There is too much emotion involved. I know this isn't Division anymore, but if you were still my recruit, I wouldn't even send you out there."

"It isn't Division anymore, you're right. We can do this the way we want. Amanda wants me, so here I come."

"Nikita, promise me that when we come up with a plan, you will follow it to a tee. I need to know that you are safe. We have to make it out of this together. We have plans, right?" He gave a little smile. She opened her mouth to say something, but then heard Alex yell. Alex came running into the kitchen.

"Nikita! It's Amanda," her big green eyes were bigger than ever. "She found us. She's got a message." Michael and Nikita looked at one another and ran into the next room.

"How the hell did you hack into my computer?" Bikrhoff yelled.

"Do you forget that I used to be your superior? I know your network inside out, Birkhoff. And it is not as secure anymore that's for sure. It took my friend almost half the time that I remember it taking when I hacked into Division's network."

"How did you even find us?" Alex asked as she stepped in front of the computer.

"Easy. I'm surprised you didn't notice the car following you home from the interview. I guess they did a good job," Amanda said. Alex shook her head with frustration. She hadn't notice anything.

"Yeah, well you are lucky Shadow Net it still in the working. When I'm done you won't even be able to get passed the first firewall."

"Okay I am done talking to the children, where are the adults?" Nikita's heart dropped when she head Amanda's voice. She walked around the computer desk to look at the screen. She paused when she saw Amanda. Michael stood behind her.

"Well, Well, Well, look who got lucky. If it were up to me, you'd be trapped in a 6x8 cell awaiting conviction," Amanda said.

"I guess we can't all have what we want."

"Isn't that the truth. Well, in this case I'll get it. All in time."

"I wouldn't put a bet on it."

"You're weak. Look at all those people you rely so heavily on. I already got Michael and somehow you've evaded that, but there's so many others to choose from. I told you friends are a liability."

"You're a sick person. You aren't touching anyone else, because I am coming for you." Amanda laughed.

"Is that a threat? Oh I know you are coming. I have a message for you. It's from someone you know. Hold on..." Amanda turned the camera and they saw President Spencer. She had a piece of cloth wrapped around her head to keep her from talking. Amanda pulled it down.

"Nikita, Ryan...all of you from Division. I need your help, please! She has had me here for quite some time now. I need to get out of here," Spencer said in a panic. Amanda turned the camera again.

"Alright that's enough...So, I'm looking forward to seeing you again, Nikita. I'll be waiting." Amanda ended the call. _I need to act fast, I need to end _this_, _Nikita thought. She turned to everyone.

"We need to come up with a plan, now. Any ideas?"

"Birkhoff, you were looking up that address for the money transfer, right?" Michael asked. Birkhoff sat back down in his chair.

"Right," he pulled up his search. "I did some digging but in vain. The address just leads to an old abandoned factory. No activity near there. I even checked to see if it matched an area on the map of Shop facilities."

"And?" Nikita asked.

"Nada. Dead end."

"Now, we don't even have a lead," Ryan sighed.

"No, I think we do. There could be activity there. We just can't see it on the surface. It could look like an old, run-down factory on the outside, but on the inside they could have a fully functioning facility," Alex said.

"The only way to find out would be to check the place out. It could get us closer to Amanda," Sam concluded. Nikita took a moment to think, then nodded with approval.

"You're right. We need to scope the place. Michael, let's go tomorrow bright and early," Nikita said.

"Wait," Alex started. "You two had to do the last mission. How about Sam and I go check the place out?"

"But Alex you are Alexandra Udinov remember?" Sonya said.

"If this is just a field mission that only involves searching, I shouldn't have a problem," Alex said.

"Alright then, let's have Sam and Alex check out the factory. Meanwhile, we will think of other ways to find Amanda," Ryan said. Everyone nodded in agreement.

* * *

Everyone settled down for the night. Nikita and Michael were cleaning off their guns, Sonya and Birkhoff were playing Assassin's Creed, and Alex, Ryan, and Sam were talking. Sam glanced over at Michael. He thought about what Alex said to him earlier. He knew that he should talk to Michael, but he didn't want to. He knew the conversation could end up turning sour. The last thing he needed was for things to get worse between them. Alex noticed Sam look over at Michael and she nudged him on the shoulder. He looked at her and could already tell what she wanted him to do without her saying anything. _What the hell_.

Nikita and Michael were laughing at something as he walked up to the table. The both of them got quiet and stared at Sam.

"Hey..." He started.

"Hey Sam, what's up?" Nikita asked.

"I,uh, wanted to ask Michael a question." Michael had went back to cleaning his guns when Sam started talking. Then, he paused and turned back around. Nikita knew what was going on so she excused herself. Sam could already see Michael getting defensive without him even saying anything.

"What did you want to ask me, Owen?" Michael said. Sam cringed when he heard Owen. He made it known to everyone that he was no longer Owen. His name was same. Yet, after talking with Alex about how he truly felt about his identity, he really didn't know who he was. He almost corrected Michael out of habit but Michael looked at him and corrected himself. "Sam."

"I just wanted to talk to you about early today. Look, I know you don't like me. You think I'm irresponsible-"

"And impulsive and too unstable..."

"...okay."

"It's not that I don't like you, I just look at things the way I did at Division. Even though we made it a new Division and now even though Division is gone, we still go on missions. Therefore, we need people out on the field that can be relied on."

"And what makes you think that I can't be relied on?" Sam asked. Michael turned to look at him. _Do you really need me to list them for you?_ He thought to himself.

"Well, for one, you completely changed personalities on us and turned against the people who were only trying to help you. What makes you think that just because you have been accepted back that we should trust anything that you do? You have to prove that you are a good asset to the team."

"Yes, and to do that you have to trust me a little bit. You have to give me a chance. I am going to go on missions with you and Alex and Nikita whether you agree with it or not. Last time I checked you weren't the boss here," Sam said. Michael looked at him and then turned back to his guns. "We don't have to like each other, but we do have to work together. We all have a common goal." Sam walked away without waiting for Michael to reply. He tried his best to reconcile their differences, but at that point in time it was no use. There was too much stress on everyone, Nikita and Michael were having problems. He decided to keep his relationship with Michael strictly professional. No point in trying to push a friendship with someone who doesn't want one.

* * *

While Sam and Michael talked to one another, Nikita asked Alex if she could talk to her in the kitchen.

"What's wrong, Nikita?" Alex asked. Without saying anything, Nikita pulled Alex into a hug. Alex was surprised, but she accepted the hug from her friend.

"I'm sorry, Alex. I haven't been there for you. I didn't realize that it was still bothering you. I should've known." Alex pulled away and looked Nikita in the eyes.

"Sam told you..."

"He shouldn't have had to, but, yes, he did. I know from what I've been through with Daniel that it'll be a rough road. Losing him helped me make up my mind to leave Division. It made me question a lot of things, but don't worry it'll get better for you. One day someone else will come a long and make you happy. You just have to let them," Nikita smiled.

"I think someone already has..." Alex returned the smile and walked out of the kitchen. Nikita stood there thinking. _Sam. _She smiled to herself. _I knew it_. They were perfect for one another.


	17. Buried in the Depths

**NOTE: Alright here is more! Hope I didn't keep you all waiting. This chapter is about Sam and Alex and...well I'll let you all read and find out ;) Enjoy! Let me know what you think! **

Buried in the Depths

Alex and Sam were ready to go on the mission. They both were armed with two hand guns, a knife, and extra ammo. Standard. For this mission, stealth was key. They didn't need to attract any attention, but they were prepared for any unexpected attention they might receive, especially if Amanda had guards there already. However, from what Birkhoff said, there was no one at the factory. They were all even questioning if going to the factory was a waste of time; it could just be another one of Amanda's tricks to put them on the wrong track. At the same time, that was unlikely considering how much it seemed like Amanda wanted them to find her.

Either way, Michael still stood in front of them next to Ryan with a stern face. His Division face. When Michael was leading a mission that was all he would think about. That was the most important thing. He paced the floor in front of Alex and Sam.

"So our main objective is to..."

"Search the place and find anything that may give us clues as to Amanda's plan," Alex said.

"And refrain from using your weapons unless..."

"Unless some idiot jumps out at us with his gun pointed at my head, dude, we've all been on missions. We aren't new recruits. We'll be alright. If we need backup we will let you know," Sam told Michael. Michael frowned and Nikita decided to jump in.

"Okay so you two are set, use your com when you get there and be careful." Nikita gave them a nod of assurance then touched Michael's shoulder. Alex and Sam nodded back and left the safe house. Alex didn't say anything until they got into the car and on the road.

"Sam, what was that?"

"I was just being honest."

"I thought you two talked and settled your differences."

"Yeah it didn't quite work that way. It was more coming to terms with the fact that we have mutual friends, a mutual goal, and have no choice but to work together."

"Oh...great," Alex scoffed.

"Hey I tried being nice to the guy, but he began attacking me again like before. So, we don't have to be friends and you know he was taking it a little too far earlier. He knows that we know what we are doing."

"He is just watching our backs. That's all."

Sam shook his head and scoffed. Maybe Michael was trying to have their backs but he did it in the strangest way.

A half hour passed and the two of them were still in the car headed to the factory. Alex looked over at Sam as he drove the car. She laid her hand on his free hand that was on the arm rest.

"So, when are we going to tell everyone?" She asked.

"About what?"

"Us."

"...I don't think now is a good time considering everything that is going on," Sam told her.

"So what are we going to do? Act like there is nothing going on?"

"No but we don't make a big deal out of it either." Alex paused. She didn't know why he was acting so vague and distant, and it was bothering her.

"Does this have to do with Emily?" She asked. It was the only explanation she could come up with. Maybe he wasn't ready for another relationship. She had her doubts too. She even had a feeling of guilt. It hadn't been that long since Sean passed. Sam glanced over at her unsure what to say. He wasn't expecting her to bring that up, but he knew he owed her an explanation.

"I just don't want to jump into anything that seems so uncertain. You are right. I haven't been in a relationship since Emily and never really thought about being in one. And you are still dealing with your loss. Plus, we have to deal with this crap with Amanda. I just don't want us to get ourselves into something we aren't ready for," Sam said. Alex understood where he was coming from, but she also didn't want to ignore the way she felt.

"You know what I say to that: screw Amanda. I won't let her get in the way anymore. And we may not be ready, but we can't avoid it either. I'm in if you are."

She made him smile. He always took the same approach to everything in his life. What was there to be afraid of?

Alex saw him smile and kissed him on the cheek. The sooner they could bury Amanda, the sooner they could put it all behind them and move on.

They made it to the factory and parked near a wooded area to keep from being seen by any possible enemies. Alex switched on her com.

"Birkhoff."

"Yes Princess Alexandra," Birkhoff joked.

"Very funny. We made it. We can see the factory. About to go in now. Are you sensing any movement near the factory?"

"Negative it is as dead as Sonya will be the next time we play Call of Duty, I'm winning next time."

"Oh Seymour, you two are clear," Sonya said chiming into the conversation.

"Let's go," Sam said to Alex. They got out of the car and cautiously crept toward the decrepit building that had shattered windows and old rusted machinery outside of it. It was surrounded by a forest with only one single path leading to it. No one would ever venture there, and if they did, they would only turn back around. It was a perfect place to hide something that someone didn't want to be found.

They approached the door of the factory and held handguns in front of them. They nodded at one another and then kicked open the doors. Their immediate reaction was to raise their guns and glance over their surroundings, but they realized that it was nothing but an empty factory. Alex lowered her gun.

"Nothing here. Just an empty factory."

"Look around. See if you find anything," Nikita said into the com.

"I'll take this side," Sam said to her.

Alex walked along the left side of the factory. There were more old tools and pieces of plywood stacked along the edge. She kicked it so she could look underneath, but she didn't see anything. She eventually made it to the end of the factory and didn't notice anything unusual. She looked over at Sam to see if he found anything, but he shook his head at her. She started to look again and tried to pay attention to every detail. She looked at one of the wooden beams and glanced over it. She notice a square carving with a small cut out. She put her thumb into the cutout to try and pull it, but she didn't need to. There was a small button inside that she pressed, and the wooden cutout slid up. Hidden was a keypad for a code.

"Sam!" Alex waved him over. He walked over and inspected the keypad.

"What is this?"

"It has got to be something Amanda put here..."

"How do we figure out the code?"

"Birkhoff," Alex said into her com. "We've found something."

"What is it?"

"A keypad hidden on one of the beams in the factory."

"A keypad?" Ryan said.

"Why would Amanda put a keypad in a factory?" Sonya asked.

"She's got to be hiding something," Michael said.

"But 'what?' is the question," Birkhoff said. " For all we know she's got something underground since she seems to not like windows."

"Division..." Nikita said.

"Division? You mean she's built another facility?" Sam said.

"That's got to be it. She made it clear that she wanted complete control over Division. She has connects in the government now. She has complete control..." Ryan said.

"We need to figure out this code," Michael said. Birkhoff looked at him.

"There's nothing to figure out, dude," he said.

"What do you mean?" Alex said.

"Come on guys, have you forgotten that I am Shadow Walker, bronze and brains of Division?"

'Well, maybe not the bronze," Sam mumbled.

"Hey! Brain bronze. You know I am still a live walking and talking Division IT system compact with every Division code there is including the one that allows you to enter Division from the barn."

"Don't you have to have access to Division's servers to open the doors through the system?" Sonya asked.

"Ah-but Division always had manual codes that could be entered just in case the system had any problems." Birkhoff said.

"If Amanda is really that obsessed with recreating Division...it must be the same code..." Nikita said.

"What is it, Birkhoff?" Alex asked.

"28759." Alex typed it in and watched the wooden cutout close and a door open on the ground. Alex and Sam walked over with their guns out and looked down into the hole.

"There's a flight of stairs," Sam said into the com.

"Go in. Be careful," Michael said. Sam went down first. There was an elevator. They got in and rode it down to the bottom.

"This is a long ride..." Alex said.

"Must be deep in the ground, like Division." He looked at her and could see the worry in her eyes. He didn't want to show it, but he was feeling the same way. If it was true, everything they wanted to get rid of and succeeded at destroying was reborn. The cycle would continue.

The elevator stopped and opened. As soon as it opened, they could see a car garage just like the one in Division. The floors were gray and the walls were made of metal. It was an exact replica, and it sent chills down their spines.

"This is insane..." Sam thought and realized he actually said it out loud when Alex responded.

"Yeah...guys, you are not going to believe what we are looking at," she said into her com.

"What is it?" Nikita asked.

"It is Division. The same one we blew up."

"That's right, it is." They heard a voice from a loudspeaker in the room. It was a voice all too familiar to them.

"Amanda..." Alex said.

"Welcome to Division."

Nikita heard Amanda's voice and felt her heart drop. She immediately got a bad feeling.

"Alex and Sam get out of there! Now!"

Without hesitation, the two of them turned around to get into the elevator. The elevator door closed.

"No, you aren't leaving. You are right where I want you." Smoke came out of the vents in the room. They began coughing and trying to get out of the room, but it was no use. They passed out on the ground of Division, and Amanda was watching with a twisted smile on her face.

* * *

"I don't see how this helps, Amanda," Mr. Jones, Amanda's overseer from the Shop, said to her. He wore a black suit, his hair with slicked back, and he donned a single ring. He held a glass of scotch in his hand and studied Amanda as she walked back and forth with a tablet in her hand.

"In order to get Nikita's attention you have to get to the people she loves. It is like laying a trap with cheese for a mouse. She'll come rushing to save them, and i'll be here waiting to get her."

"I don't know if it is smart to take Alexandra Udinov."

"Why?"

"Well, she is an important asset now to the UN. If she comes up missing, they will go searching and it'll lead them..."

"To me? No, it won't. Trust me, I have this all under control. Once Nikita is out of the way, we can recreate Division. Take it to new levels, and we will not have to worry about the government being in our way. We will have complete control. The United States will be in the palm of our hands." Mr. Jones smiled and took a sip from his glass.


	18. One Step Ahead

**NOTE: This is probably my fastest update. I really enjoyed reading your comments, you all are awesome! I must say I really like how this is turning out. I can't wait to keep writing. I found some time to write another chapter today so you guys do not have to keep waiting. Let's just say Nikita has some tricks up her sleeve ;) Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think! **

One Step Ahead

"Alex! Alex!" Nikita yelled into the com. "Sam!" Neither of them responded. "Damn it!" She yelled and slammed her fist down on Birkhoff's desk. She combed her fingers through her hair and paced the floor. Everyone stood stunned completely caught off guard. They didn't even expect to find anything at the factory. Finding a Division replica was a surprise they were beginning to regret receiving.

"What...just happened?" Birkhoff said in shock as he stared at the computer screen that read "Alex/Sam."

Michael face twisted in frustration as he walked up to Nikita.

"We have to go after them. We may be able to make it there and grab them before Amanda sends a team," he said.

"No," Ryan jumped in. "We don't know how close Amanda's team is. She could already have a team picking them up as we speak."

"We can't feed them to Amanda. We don't know what she is going to do!" Michael said in frustration.

"And you two going there trying to save them will not help. It'll only put the two of you in danger. For all you know, that is exactly what Amanda wants you to do. Then, she will have all of you. We can't have that, not if we want to win this battle," Ryan said.

"And how are were going to do that with Alex and Sam missing? We can't go barging in on Amanda, just the two of us," Nikita said.

"Then what hell are we going to do? Stand here? The longer Amanda has them, the worse the situation can get. Sam and Alex are both vulnerable. She has messed with their heads before and she can do it again."

"Besides all of this...how are we going to find Alex and Sam? We don't even know where Amanda is?" Sonya said. They all stood silent, stumped.

"Yeah, Sonya's got a point. Sam doesn't have a tracker in and neither does Alex."

"How were you tracking them?"

"Their com's have devices in them that allow me to track them, but the signal is weak since they are still underground..." Birkhoff said. "Shadow Net is in the works," he mumbled reluctant to admit the truth.

"Do you think you can try and strengthen the signal?" Ryan asked. Birkhoff began typing in codes on his keyboard to see if he could get a better signal.

"Wait! They are moving!" Birkhoff said and watched as the red circles moved across his screen.

"Amanda is having them picked up," Ryan said.

"Sonya can you try to get a visual?" Birkhoff said to her. She nodded. Birkhoff talked into his earpiece trying to see if it would help them gain consciousness and possibly escape.

"Alex! Sam! Guys, Guys! Can you hear me?"

"I have a visual," Sonya said. They got an overhead look at the ground from a satellite. They could see a black escalade and three men. One was carrying Alex and the other two were carrying Sam by his arms and legs. The man carrying Alex stopped and looked at her. He laid her on the ground and examined her hear. They watched as he pulled out her com and threw it on the ground.

"No, no, no, no, no!" Birkhoff yelled and then gave a disgruntled sigh as he watched the man step on the com. He waved at the other men and they pulled out Sam's and did the same thing.

"There goes out trackers..."

"Great. So now are we going to find out where they are being transported?" Michael asked.

"Can you watch them by satellite?" Nikita asked.

"It wouldn't work. First of, we would have to ping a location to the satellite every so often while keeping track of the car. Once they hit a main road it'll be nearly impossible. We would an operations unit to do that..."

"Look when we signed on to do this, we decided to get things done without Division's resources. We can do this," Michael said.

"But how? Seymour is right, we are at a dead end, Michael," Sonya said. Nikita folded her arms and began pacing again while she was deep in thought. She had her back turned towards everyone when she stopped in her tracks. She turned around with determination in her eyes. She had a plan.

"Even if we find out where Amanda is keeping Alex and Sam, Michael and I may not be able to go in and get them out safely. We know Amanda is planning something, so we need to be a step ahead of her. We need to do something unexpected," she said.

"What are you getting at?" Ryan asked.

"Let's face it: The United States government has a target on my head, and there is no escaping that. We all want to make things right. Well, let's do it. Amanda wanted me to take the fall for the president's death. I will. I will turn myself into the CIA," she said looked at everyone.

"Nikita are you insane? You know they won't negotiate with you, you didn't supposedly 'kill' just anyone. It is the President of the United States. They are going to throw you into jail and not let you out until they can put you on trial and then throw you right back into another cage," Michael said.

"Yeah Niki, I know how much you like windows," Birkhoff added.

"No, this is the way it has to be done. I'm done hiding and running. We need to set things straight and they will listen to me. My whole life I have been thrown into a system that chewed me up and tried to throw me away. I'm an ex-convict supposedly dead, but I was forced to pay my dues to this country. Well, now it is time for it to repay me, in full. All I want is a chance at a new life, all of us do. In order to do that, we need to tell the truth like Michael and I planned to do in the first place with the black box."

"But the black box is gone. There is no more evidence of Division's existence," Ryan said.

"There is. There is me, you, all of us, and Amanda. People who all have death certificates and graves, but are standing right here. I am going to tell them the honest truth."

"And will they even believe it?" Birkhoff asked.

"It's a risk that I have to take," she said.

"Well, you aren't taking it alone," Michael said and walked up to her. "I'm going with you." Nikita formed a small smile on her face. _He is always there for me not matter what._ After Michael stepped forward Ryan did as well with a smile. Birkhoff looked over at Sonya who was already standing and put her hand out for his.

"Ah-what the hell, I'm in!" Birkhoff said and stood up with Sonya. Nikita smiled at all of them.

"You all are amazing, you don't have to do this."

"We do," Sonya said. "We are all in this together. We all come from different paths, but we all ended up in the same place, Division. We need to share what we know as well. We aren't giving up until we clear your name and take Amanda down."

"I must say Nikita, you are one hell of a fighter and I respect that. You even rescued me, an analyst in the CIA who was framed and barely made it out alive. Now, it's time for me to return the favor." She smiled and nodded.

"Alright. Let's finish this. It is time for Division to burn."

* * *

Alex woke up with a headache. She blinked trying to focus her vision. She rubbed her eyes and took in her surroundings. She realized that she was in the back of a truck laying next to Sam who was still unconscious. She grabbed her ear to turn on her com, but she realized it was gone. _Shit. _She had to think quickly. She patted her jacket to see if her cell phone was still there. Her jacket had a hidden pocket inside, and they hadn't found it. She pulled out her phone listened before dialing. There were men talking in the front in what sounded like German. One of them laughed and she took that chance to turn the phone on silent. She looked up and saw the back of another man's head. _Three men. _She kept still and dialed number one on speed dial, Birkhoff.

* * *

They all stood around a table devising a plan until Birkhoff heard a beeping noise coming from his computer.

"It's Alex!" he yelled. He answered and listened in. No one said anything. They could only hear faint talking int he background.

Alex realized that Birkhoff may say something which may even be heard through the phone even though it wasn't on speaker. She placed the phone on the mat in the trunk and tapped on the receiver.

"Is she there?" Ryan asked.

"Wait-shh..." Birkhofff immediately recognized the tapping. She was talking to them in morse code. Birkhoff wrote down the number on a piece of paper and then translated it.

"In a car with Sam. Three men. German."

"Amanda must have men from German intelligence working for her," Michael said. He started to write down the rest of it, but she abruptly stopped. Birkhoff looked up at the screen and saw that the trace finished.

"The vehicle must have stopped," Sonya said. An address came up on the screen and Alex turned off her phone. "They must be where Amanda plans to keep them."

"Jersey, go figure," Birkhoff said considering that Division was in New Jersey.

"Perfect timing. Now, we know where they will be which is going to make our plan run smoothly. We have leverage now." Nikita said. "Time to get moving."


	19. Captured

**NOTE: This is probably the fastest I have updated. I found time to work on it today and decided to post it (thanks to Ayushi95) haha! This only focuses on a few of them, but you will see all of them in the next chapter or two. I'm still trying to develop the rest. And you guys have been awesome! Let me know what you think! Glad you are enjoying it! OMG! Thanks for telling me that I accidentally posted the same chapter twice Kiara! Here it is! More coming soon! **

Captured

Alex put her phone back into her hidden pocket and acted like she was still unconscious. One of the tall German men decided to wake Sam with a punch to the stomach. Sam coughed from the hard blow and was forced to his feet.

"Get up!" she heard one of them say. Her heart was beating rapidly. If they were already beating them up, she knew that this wasn't going to go nicely. A man leaned over and gave her a few light taps on the face, and she opened her eyes.

"Come on," he said. She was surprised he didn't hit her as hard. He grabbed her arms and put them in cuffs before walking her into what looked like a regular office building. "She's waiting for you," the man said with a thick accent. They only person he could be talking about was Amanda. A lump formed in her throat and she tried to swallow it down, but her mouth was dry. She was terrified. The last time Amanda got ahold of her, she caused a lot of damage. Alex had been vulnerable before, and some of the same scars existed. But now, she was aware of them, and she knew that in order for her to survive, she needed to look passed them. Amanda can't use them against her again.

She had been deep in thought until she was brought into the facility through a back door and lead through a hallway. Sam was in front of her being led by two men on each side as he dragged himself along. The men knocked on the door at the end of the hallway and waited. When the door opened a man in a suit who looked exceptionally well put together was standing there.

"Come in gentleman..." he let the two men pull Sam into the room. He saw Alex and gave her a sly smile. "And lady." Alex stared into his eyes and got chills when he reminded her of Semak, the man who took her father's life away. Alex was led into the room and pushed forward. She stood next to sam still handcuffed. For the first time, she was able to look Sam in the eyes. He looked at her and nodded with a little smile. She could see the weariness in his eyes, but he was trying to be strong. She wanted to touch him. Instead, the just nodded back. The men were told to leave the room and the door closed. Alex noticed how neat the room was. It looked like an interior designer put it together. _Amanda. _Alex looked over and saw Amanda standing behind a desk. She was smiling her devilish smile.

"Alexandra Udinov, we meet again," she said as she walked up to her. She glanced over at Sam and her smile disappeared. "And Sam. Welcome. How did you like my newly built facility?"

"You mean your replica of Division? It made me sick to my stomach," Alex retorted. Amanda smiled.

"Don't worry. You will come to enjoy it again."

_What? _Alex thought to herself.

"So...this is Alexandra Udinov? I finally get to meet you," the man in the suit said and walked up to her.

"Who are you?" Alex asked.

"You can call me Jones," he smiled. "You know, I am very impressed by you, but I must also add very infuriated. Dominik Bauer was a great asset to my organization."

"You mean the women he sold to you were a great asset to your organization." he stared at her and sat on the leather chair in front of them.

"Precisely. Tell me, how do you know so much about us?"

"I did my research."

"You both are Division."

"_Was_ Division," Sam said finally speaking up.

"That's what we wanted to talk to you about," Amanda said.

"So, Ms. Udinov, I understand that you are working for the United Nations as a diplomat. You have come a long way certainly. You even detached yourself from Zetrov," Jones said. Alex felt exposed. _How did he know so much about my life? _

"What are you getting at?"

"Well, honestly you are a very resourceful woman. I was hoping you would and your friend would consider being allies to our organization," he said and looked over at Amanda. Sam scoffed. Alex couldn't help but laugh.

"Wait, are you joking?"

"Alex, it would be a great opportunity," Amanda said.

"It is horrible what you are doing to those girls. Coercing them into becoming research subjects. I don't even want to know what you are doing to them."

"We use them for the advancement of science. Without them, I don't think we would have found such ground breaking discoveries." Alex avoided his eyes and looked passed him to the window covered by thin white curtains. She cut her eyes at him.

"My goal is to take you down. The Shop and especially Amanda. If you really think I would work for you or with you, you are sadly mistaken. You set Nikita up, and they are going to make sure she gets out of this. Then, they are going to come after you."

"I'd worry about watching your back if I were you instead of trying to recruit former agents for your new Division," Sam said to Amanda.

"You mean former _agent._ You were just a low-life cleaner."

"Which means I can clean you after Nikita is done with you," Sam retorted. Amanda glared at him.

"Have them taken to holding," Amanda said to Jones.

"Wait-" Sam said. "I need to know something. I want to know what you did to me. I want to know who I really am."

"Are we really doing this again, Sam?" Amanda scoffed.

"You are hiding something from me."

"Get him out of here."

Jones walked over to the door and the three men came back inside. They grabbed Sam and Sam decided to shove one of the men with his shoulder. The man grabbed him and forced him out of the door. Amanda stopped the third man from grabbing Alex.

"Think about our proposal, Alex. Remember, you have to lead your own life away from Nikita," she whispered to her and then let the man take her.

* * *

CIA HEADQUARTERS-Langley, Virginia

All of them walked into the CIA. Ryan walked up to the receptionist. The blond woman looked at up at him in surprise.

"Fletcher?"

"I need to speak to the director of CIA, Avet" he said to her.

"But-you can't just..."

"Tell him I need to speak to him now. He will be interested in what I have to say." She did what he said and paged him. They were all taken through security. They didn't even bother to bring any weapons. Security led them into a conference room. They all sat quietly. Birkhoff held Sonya's hand under the table. He could tell that she was nervous. Michael and Nikita sat staring at the door, waiting for Avet to enter the room. Ryan was wondering how Avet was going to react when he saw him again. The last time he saw Avet, he had a gun pointed at his chest when he made a rash and extremely risky decision to help Nikita escape the CIA. _It's time. _He prepared himself. Just then, Avet came into the room and was surprised when he saw five people sitting there waiting for him. They all stood when he entered the room.

"Fletcher?"

"Sir, please-"

"You came knocking on the wrong door. I should have you put in cuffs."

"Sir, I know I have caused a lot of trouble, but if you could just listen to what we have to say..." Avet scanned all of their faces and immediately recognized Nikita.

"You," he pointed at her. "You also should be put in cuffs for breaking into the CIA!"

"Sir, with all due respect, I came into the CIA to save you, Ryan, and everyone else who was in the skiff room that day. If you would have stayed in there the nerve toxin would have killed all of you. I'm not trying to say I went about things in the right way, but I'm saying the job was done and we need your help, now." Avet looked between Nikita and Ryan.

"What is it that you need?" he asked.

"You are looking for the person who killed Kathleen Spencer," Nikita said. "I am the one in the picture." Avet's eyes grew wide and he called for security. "It was all Division!" Avet looked at her.

"Division? Percy is dead."

"Percy died but Division didn't," Ryan said. Avet had a confused look on his face. "Sir, you have to listen to us, someone from Division is behind the president's death and is trying to gain access to the government." Within seconds men were bursting through the doors before Ryan could finish his sentence. They put handcuffs on all of them.

"Sir, we can explain the situation," Ryan said trying to look up at him even though he was pinned to the ground.

"I'm done listening to you Fletcher," Avet said as they were all led out of the room and into holding cells.

Ryan and Nikita were across from each other in holding. Ryan leaned against the wall and sighed.

"That could have gone better."

"It's alright. I expected this to happen. They are going to interrogate us. We can explain everything then."

A guard came to her cell and opened it. She was led into a room and handcuffed to the table. Avet entered the room with a frown on his face. He threw a picture on the table of Nikita walking into the oval office, the picture the had shown on the news. He sat down across from her and put his finger on the picture.

"This is you?" he asked her.

"Yes." Avet chuckled.

"So, you are turning yourself in?"

"You don't understand. I said that it was me in the picture, but I am not confessing to a crime."

"What do you mean? The president was shot during the time that you were there. Susan Mason, which I assume is a fake name, because when I met you, you weren't a professor."

"You know that Division is real."

"_Was _real."

"Until a couple of months ago, Division was still alive and kicking, but instead of being led by Percy, it was led by Ryan."

"Fletcher?"

"Yes, and by the president's approval."

"We were not informed of this."

"You were not informed of this. There are people in the CIA who kept Division under wraps before. I'm sure there are people doing it now. But I am not Division. However, I was framed for the crime by someone who once controlled Division. I never pulled the trigger. The president committed suicide." Avet laughed and leaned back in his chair.

"And you expect me to believe that?"

"Yes, because it is the truth."

"This is preposterous."

"No, what is preposterous is that I was forced into going to the White House to kill the president, and was aided by Agent Stirling of the secret service who gave me a gun. He was taking orders from a woman named Amanda who is a former Division trainer, I guess you can call her. She is the real enemy and she is working with a secret international organization called the Shop. She plans to recreate Division where she is in complete control and has no government restriction."

"You sound like Fletcher."

"And Fletcher was right when he said that Division existed." Avert looked Nikita in the eyes. He could see how serious she was.

"And why should I believe you? You are a criminal."

"I have proof that everything I am saying is true. It's only a matter of time before you take us out of these handcuffs and you let us help you."

"I think you are done," Avet said and had her sent back to her cell. Nikita wasn't sure if she got through to Avet, but it was only a matter of time, she hoped.


	20. Forbidden Truth

**NOTE: Sorry for the wait everyone! I haven't had time over the weekend to write. Also, I actually had a little writer's block, but it passed and I'm back with more. I'm going to delve into Sam/Owen a little in this chapter and more in the next chapter so I hope you all like what I come up with. Thanks for continuing to read! Thanks for all the great feedback, I love reading your comments. Let me know what you think!**

Forbidden Truth

Alex and Sam were led underground. The spacious room was dim and had three large cages. Alex was put into the second cage and Sam into the third. The men walked away leaving them trapped in the basement.

Sam grunted and slammed his forearm and against the cage.

"I can't believe this!" He yelled and leaned against his arm.

"Who's there?" They heard on their left. They saw a woman leaning against the bars of the cage, and they realized who it was. Kathleen Spencer. Alex's heart dropped. She was finally seeing for herself that the president was alive.

"President Spencer..."

Spencer let out an exacerbated sigh.

"As if I feel like president anymore. Everyone thinks I am dead, and yet here I am locked in a cage being experimented on an locked up as a prisoner."

"Everyone is trying to get you out if here and expose Amanda, Nikita is trying to clear her name," Alex said.

"Nikita," her eyes grew wide.

"Nikita was framed for your assassination."

"How?"

"I don't know how, but they were able to clone you. A woman posed as you and Nikita was ordered to go to the oval office and shoot you," Sam said. Spencer put her hand on her head trying to fully understand the situation.

"So, we shot…me or—someone pretending to be me?"

"No. The imposter committed suicide while Nikita was in the room, so they believe she did it," Alex said.

"This is impossible. How were they able to…." Spencer stopped and her eyes became wide in revelation.

"You okay?" Sam asked her.

"I know how they did it."

"How?" Alex said with skepticism.

"When I was at the G20 a man grabbed me while I was in the bathroom. He held his hand over my mouth the whole time as I struggled. Then, he sedated me, and that is all I remember. When I woke up I was in this cage."

"Then, they must have replaced you with the decoy at the G20…" Alex said aloud as she tried to put the pieces together. "I wonder how they got your DNA beforehand…"

"Easy," Sam said. "There are a lot of people who have access to her in the white house. Someone could have taken it from her coffee mug or just about anything in her office."

"Then, we'd have to assume that it was Stirling or assume that there could be other Shop agents hiding in the white house."

"Shop agents?" Spencer asked.

"President Spencer, we are going to get you out of here. I am sure Nikita and the team will be on their way. Don't worry," Alex said.

"I hope you are right," Sam said.

"They will come," Alex said with confidence.

Amanda came walking into the room with two men behind her. They walked up to Sam's cage and opened the door to put handcuffs on him.

"Sam is going to come with me for a while. At least Kathleen now has someone else to keep her company," Amanda smiled. "I guess Sam will be my company."

"Where are we going? You better not be putting me in that chair," Sam said.

"Don't be a rude house guest." They took him out of the room and Alex felt her heart racing. _What is she going to do?_ Alex knew what it was like to fall victim to Amanda. She hurt so many people. _Sean, Ryan, Nikita…everyone._ There was no telling what Amanda was going to do.

* * *

The team had spent forty-five minutes behind bars, each person interviewed; yet nothing was happening. The CIA had trouble believing everything; it all seemed incredibly improbable. Yet, everything they were telling the CIA was the closest thing to the truth.

"Ryan, I don't know if it is working," Nikita admitted.

"Hang in there. They will realize that we are telling the truth."

"When? In a couple of hours? Or maybe days? Maybe never," Nikita said.

"We knew this was going to happen." Michael said as he stood at the bars in the cell next to Ryan's. "We have to be patient."

"Or we can settle this. Alex and Sam need our help."

"Niki, I don't think it is time for one of your crazy stunts," Birkhoff said from the cell next to hers.

"No, I think we do. I don't know about all of you, but I would rather not be confined to a 6x8 cell," Sonya said trying to stick her head through the bars of her cell next to Birkhoff's. Nikita smiled; she loved Sonya and her courage.

"I have an idea," Niktia said. "Trust me." She began to talk to Michael in sign language. The one useful thing they learned from being Division agents was how to speak different languages. She told Michael her plan in sign language and then filled in the blanks with French for Ryan. He happened to be able to speak a little French from his years in college.

"I don't know if this is going to work," Ryan said.

"It will," Nikita said. She took a deep breath. It was now or never at that point. She needed to save her friends. She keeled over grabbing her stomach in pain.

"Guard!" Ryan yelled. The guard casually walked over sucking at his teeth after eating a sandwich for lunch.

"What?" he said clearly annoyed and uninterested.

"I think she is sick! She has pain in her stomach." The guard stood examining her as she lay on the floor in pain. After what seemed like forever, he put the key in the door and opened it. He knelt down beside her and reached out to touch her shoulder. She took the opportunity to grab his arm and twist it. She jumped up and forced him down to the ground on his stomach.

Nikita changed into the man's uniform, which was baggy on her slender frame, but it would do. She fixed the hat on her head and wore it so that it shaded her eyes. She left the man passed out on the floor in his undergarments, closed the cell door, and locked it. She handed Ryan the key.

"You all know what to do," she said. They all nodded, and she nodded back. She walked up to Michael's cell and held his hand.

"I love you, be careful," he said with worried eyes

"I love you too," she said as she tried to stay calm, but her heart felt like it was beating out of her chest. She was extremely nervous. More so than many other missions she had been on. This was the final one and there were major consequences either way.

"Good luck," Sonya smiled at her. Nikita nodded and quickly left. She knew there were cameras and someone would be there soon to ask more questions. She had to get out and finish this once and for all.

* * *

Sam was strapped down to Amanda's chair. His heart was beating rapidly; he was sweating. He knew that something bad was going to happen. Every time he sat in her chair, he was never the same afterwards.

He watched as she set up her tools on a table next to him.

"What are you going to do to me?" he asked.

"You have asked me, Sam, who you are plenty of times. I told you, and you are still not satisfied—"

"You didn't tell me everything. I know that, Amanda. I want you to tell me everything so that I can remember who I am." She cut her eyes at him.

"You know, Sam, I was surprised to see you go to my underground facility with Alex. Quite surprised. I was pretty sure that after the G20, I was never going to hear from you again. You got away with the black box, didn't you?"

"I got rid of that damn box," he looked her straight in the eyes. She smirked at him.

"Did you really? Why is that?"

"I didn't want anything to do with it anymore."

"But you still could have sold it."

"Screw that."

"Hm...Interesting. So, you gave up the opportunity to earn money off of Division's secrets for what exactly?"

"Putting those secrets out into the world would be complete chaos." This time Amanda laughed.

"Wow you almost sound like Nikita. You are starting to sound like Owen again—following Nikita's every beck and call. Has she convinced you that I have toyed with your mind?"

"No, I came to that conclusion on my own. I don't know who I am anymore."

"Interesting…you spent so much time as Owen that you actually believe that is who you are." He stared at her anxiously awaiting for an answer to all of this.

"I gave you your memories back. I told you who you are. If you can't come to terms with it, that is something you have to figure out on your own."

"Don't bullshit me Amanda, you are hiding something, and I want to know what it is. Owen can't be all a lie. Ten years of my life…the only years that felt real." She looked at him long and hard, then smiled.

"You're right, I left out some blanks, but only for your own good. I can trigger your memories, walk you through your past, I haven't had you in my chair for quite some time now," she smiled. He shivered. "I can give you some clarity, but under one condition." He swallowed. He knew that this wouldn't be good.

"What?"

"I want to know what Nikita is planning now. She had you two snooping around, I expected as much. Now, I want to know what she is going to do from this point forward."

"Jee—well I would have known if you let me talk to them before gassing me while I was in your Division replica…"

"Enough with the lies Sam, from both of us…you know what is going on. You have something I want, I have something you want. Even trade." Her eyes dug into him and he felt no choice but to speak. He needed to know who he was. Especially if there was a chance that they'd all make it out of this. This may be the last time he will ever see Amanda. He swallowed the lump in his throat and began to speak.


	21. Revealed

**NOTE: Okay here is more! This chapter focuses mostly on Sam/Owen. I always wanted him to be Owen rather than Sam. So, I thought long and hard about how I could incorporate that without significantly changing the plot of the series. I hope you all like it! Let me know what you think of it! Thanks for reading, pleease comment! =D**

Revealed

Sam was trying to think of what to tell and what not to tell. _If I leave out the crucial details but make it seem like I am telling her the whole story it won't hurt, right?  
_ He cleared his throat and watched her sit down in a velvet chair next to his seat the way she did in her lair in Division. He used to hate having to go there.

"Okay, start talking," she said.

_If I tell her everything now, there's no guarantee that I'll get what I want._

"No." She raised an eyebrow. "I'm not stupid. I know that the second you get what you want you will disappear down that corridor planning your attack and ill be left with unanswered questions. I'll tell you what you want to know once you tell me what I want to know."

"And why should I do that?"

"Because you have me locked up here. I have nowhere to go so you don't have to worry about me. Just tell me who the hell I am and I'll leave you alone for good."

He seemed to be convincing enough because she got out of her chair and made him sit back. Without a word she put electrodes his temples. She then pushed the table holding the device she had used numerous times to activate certain parts of the brain towards him. With that device, she had complete control those who unfortunately landed in her chair. Sam became nervous when he saw the long needle that would end up going through his nose.

"Are you ready?" She asked with raised eyebrows.

"Just get it over with," he replied and leaned back. He couldn't believe that he was actually allowing this to happen to him. _But I need to know_.  
Amanda stood over him and began to move the needle towards his face.

* * *

Nikita walked casually through the halls keeping her head low. She didn't want to cause any unneeded attention. She found an exit and casually opened the door. It led to a long stairwell. She sighed and went down the stairs as fast as she could. Her mind was racing. _Amanda, that bitch…Alex…Sam…Avet…the CIA…Spencer. _She tried to focus on one thing to stay focused on the task at hand: finding Amanda's hideout and saving Sam and Alex. She repeated the address in her head that Birkhoff was able to track from Alex's phone signal. _She called and sent us a message with Morse code_, _smart girl_. She was always amazed at how much Alex learned from her. Nikita was always unsure of how effective those months of lessons were for Alex. She was never sure how serious Alex had been about learning, how to be an agent and using the information to help her take down Division. Nikita realized how much she underestimated Alex. Either way, Alex was still like a sister to her. _I'm coming for you…_

Nikita made it out of the building and was able to make it back to their car and begin her final mission.

* * *

_Sam looked around in panic. He was lying on the floor. When he got up and looked around, he realized where he was, Division. He was standing right in front of Ops and was looking down at the training area for recruits. _

_ "We are where everything started for you." Sam quickly turned around surprised at the unwelcome voice. It was none other than Amanda. _

_ "You could have given me warning that you were going to pop up in my dreams." Amanda couldn't help but chuckle at him. _

_ "You are not dreaming. You are about to take a step into your past through a simulation that I have create through activating specific parts of your brain. It is similar to dreaming. I will guide you through, but you will be able to fill in all of the blanks. These are your memories. Well, most of it will be..." Sam stared at her, soaking it all in. _

_ "Unlike what I did to Nikita that day you rudely interrupted me, you will be an outsider looking in." Just then she disappeared and he was suddenly in Percy's office. He was a new recruit at the time. Stubborn, angry, and defiant. He stood there looking at Percy with a nonchalant face. Wade was standing off to the side._

_ "Owen, Owen Elliot. 23 years old, from Seattle, raised by a single mother, older brother, younger sister, college drop out, been arresting multiple times for carrying illegal substances, multiple DUI's leading to a little jail time community service and…then the big one that landed you here…" Percy stopped and looked up at Owen. "Arrested and convicted as a well-known drug dealer who specialized in cocaine." Owen glared at him and stood with his hands behind his back like a soldier. Percy got up from his chair and dropped Owen's file on his desk carelessly. He walked around his desk and then leaned against it with his arms crossed._

_ "Where did you learn to stand like that? Guys your age can barely stand up straight and keep your pants around your waist."_

_ "I spent some time in boot camp as a teen. Did you overlook that in your copious file of my life or did someone forget to add that part in?" Sam retorted. Percy gave him one of his smiles showing that he was amused._

_ "And why did you go to boot camp? I'm guessing you were the problem child that your mother couldn't handle, raising three kids on her own and all."_

_ "I caused too much trouble for her," he said with disappointment._

_ "I'm sure you did. Well, now you are our problem. However, with the high success rate of our recruit-training program here at Division, you should be ready to go out into the field in no time. Then, instead of being a problem, you will be an asset to our team." Sam looked at Percy straight in the eyes for the first time since their conversation started. _

_ "Tell me, how did a 23 year old manage to not only sell drugs and not get caught, but run his own little cartel? Mr. Elliot, that shows initiative and independence. Those are valuable characteristics here." Percy walked up to Owen and put his hand on his shoulder. "You'll do just fine here. Now, Wade is going to take you down to the training area to get you started." He looked at Wade. "I want him to spend less time with Birkhoff and more time training with you. I have some plans for you Owen."_

_ They all disappeared and Sam stood surprised trying to soak it all in. Amanda reappeared next to him._

_ "Well, now you know how you joined Division," she said. He looked at her._

_ "My name is…really Owen." Amanda nodded and smiled at his realization. _

_ "Yes, it is. We aren't done yet." _

_ The scene changed and Owen was training with Wade. They were sparring and Owen had his eyes right on Wade. They fought and were equally fighting with the same strength and technique. The fight was so intense that everyone stood watching. Some were shouting for Owen, some for Wade. Wade had Owen pinned down, but Owen wasn't going to let him win. He was able to push Wade off of him and pin him down. He put up his fist and stopped before he landed a punch right in Wade's face. He had won the fight. Everyone clapped for him._

_ "I'm ready. Send me on a mission already," Owen said._

_ DIVISION—OPERATIONS_

_ "You're target's are these four men. Now, this isn't a kill mission. You are going to be there playing as their friend. You will be apart of their unit and your objective is to find out if they have been selling drugs, and if they are catch them in the act so we can have the removed from the army and arrested." Sam cut his eyes at Wade. "Percy said this would be perfect for you considering you previous experiences," Wade gave him a smirk that made Owen want to punch it right off of his face._

_ "Whatever. Just get me out of this hole. I'm ready for some sunlight."_

_ "Alright. Before we let you out, just some more information. Your name will be Sam, Sam Matthews. You are from Oregon, you don't have any close family members. You joined the army, because you wanted to do something beneficial for you country and start a new life. Everyone else you can make up as you go. The menial things are just to give you guidelines as to what to say to the men in your unit. You can make up as much as you want, but make sure that you are Sam Matthews. Not Owen Elliot. You cannot give them any inkling that you are anyone else other than who you say you are. If they find out that you are lying, it could expose you, Division, your true objective, and ruin the mission. You are Sam Matthews understood?"_

_ "Alright, I'm Sam Matthews," Owen said nonchalantly._

_ "I want you to take this seriously Owen. If there is anything that I taught you it is that we don't fail here. You were given once chance at life and you failed. This is your last chance. Fail this time and there will be consequences." Wade left Owen in Ops. _

_ "Do you see? This is how it all started…" Amanda appeared. So, Sam Matthews was only my cover…It was only…"_

_ "Well, you know what happened. You decided to help run the drug trade rather than stop them from doing it. You ended up killing all of them. Wade, at first wasn't very happy, but after talking with Percy they decided that you neutralized the problem by eliminating the men all together. Well, except for one as you know, but he never told anyone what happened, so we one that battle. However, Percy thought it was too reckless. You caused too much attention towards yourself and the situation. You had gotten shot, and when you woke up you didn't remember anything. Honestly, it saved you life. I was considering triggering you kill chip, but then I decided to work my magic and then helped you become Owen again."_

_ "You mean you messed with my head." _

_ "When you woke up you were confused, and really didn't know that your name was Owen, just accepted it."_

_ Now, they were in Percy's office. Owen was standing in front of Percy._

_ "You seen to have gotten better Owen." Owen didn't respond. "You got the job done, completed your mission, but you didn't follow orders. You decided to try and make your own rules. Let me reiterate: when you are here, you follow my rules," Percy was in his face, and Owen looked him in the eyes. "I'm going to make a deal with you. You will no longer be an agent. Instead, you will be a cleaner. It is quick, easy, to the point. And since you like to make your own decisions, I will give you a target and you can decide the best way to execute the kill. Understood?"_

_ "Yes, sir." Percy nodded._

_ "You remember what happened to you. You were a cleaner for quite some time. You even killed Nikita's lover, Daniel."_

_ DIVISION—PERCY'S OFFICE_

_ "I must say Owen. You have been doing a good job especially this time. This target, Daniel, he was an important one. Congratulations."_

_ "Thank you, sir." Percy smiled at him and dismissed him from his office. Owen walked down the hallway towards Amanda's office and a slender woman in a suit was walking towards him. He glanced at her and kept walking passed her. _

_ "Is that…Nikita?" He asked realizing that he had walked right passed Nikita that day. At that time, they hadn't even known one another. _

_ "It is. That was the day you killed Daniel. After you gave Percy the news, he called my office and told me. Then, I called Nikita to my office to break the news."_

_Owen suddenly felt a pang of guilt. "It wasn't long after that you started gaining a conscience and decided that you no longer wanted to kill people for a living. You suddenly began to feel guilty."_

_ Sam was now standing in Percy's office again, but this time he was watching a conversation between Amanda and Percy._

_ "I think we should activate his kill chip," Amanda suggested. _

_ "Why is that?"_

_ "He has failed as an agent. He has refused to continue as a cleaner. Now, what are you going to do with him?" Percy sat back in his chair and thought for a moment._

_ "I can do something with him…"_

_ "Like what?"_

_ "…he can be a guardian." Amanda sighed in disbelief._

_ "I have these newly made black boxes. I can't have them all in the same place. They need protection. Owen can do it."_

_ "His is unstable Percy-"_

_ "But he can live in an apartment and watch a box. That way, he can live independently and I only have to speak to him sporadically." Amanda sighed again._

_ "So you were going to kill me, Amanda?"_

_ "Standard protocol. You hadn't proved yourself to me. Percy tended to be a little more lenient." _

_ The scene changed again and this time Owen was strapped down in Amanda's chair. _

_ "I decided that since you couldn't take orders, I was going to make sure that you did so."_

_ "By doing what?"_

_ "I wanted to bring out a more reliable, loyal Owen."_

_ "So, you gave me traits that I didn't have?"_

_ "No, I just made sure that you couldn't access your memories. That way, Division would be all that you know. Then, we would have complete control. Then, we put you on the regimen, which helped you become stronger so that you could protect the box. But the regimen also stabilized your emotions. Kept you calm."_

_ "So you basically gave me depression?" Sam scoffed. "I remember those days. I felt trapped in my little apartment dwelling over everything I had done as a cleaner…and then I met Emily. She changed everything for me…"_

_ "And you put her in danger, because you let her affect your mission."_

_ "I fell in love—"_

_ "First mistake. You disobeyed Percy again after all that time…"_

_ "And I am glad I did."_

* * *

Owen gasped when he woke up. He looked up at Amanda.

"I am glad that I went against Percy's orders. You couldn't change me. No matter how much you tried. I've always been the same guy, just didn't know who I was, where I came from. When I weaned myself off the regimen I started to feel strange. I started having random flashbacks, dreams. That was my brain trying to piece things back together and all that time I thought you made Owen up. I have always been Owen, you just led me to believe that you were hiding my true identity from me when really Sam was just a fake cover up for a mission…"

"Great job Owen. You've finally figured it all out."

"I'm glad that place is gone. You've destroyed so many people and did some sick things. Made people do horrible things. No wonder why Nikita was so eager to destroy Division, and no wonder why she wants you dead now…"

Amanda frowned at him.

"I have help up my end of the bargain. Now it is your turn. What is she planning?"

* * *

Avet returned to holding to once again question Ryan. He saw Ryan and looked over to see that Nikita wasn't in her cell. Instead he saw the guard passed out in his undergarments.

"What the hell—what happened here!"

"She escaped," Ryan said.

"How did—damn it!" he ran over to the phone on the wall and called security. "We have a problem in holding." Avet ran out and Ryan took that chance to use the key Nikita gave to him. He unlocked his cell and then let everyone else out.

"What is going to happen?" asked Sonya.

"I don't know," Ryan said. "But whatever happens, we need to stick together."

"We need to help Nikita get Sam and Alex out safely. Remember what we all talked about before," Michael told everyone.

"We got your back, Mikey," Birkhoff said. They all stood there waiting.

Not longer after a group of security guards and two CIA agents came to holding. They all paused when they saw that everyone was out of their cell. The security guards immediately pulled out their guns and aimed that at the group. Ryan put his hands up.

"Listen we—" he began. He was caught off guard when one of the agents who he had known from before when he worked at the CIA, ran up to him and punched him in the face.

"Damn it Fletcher! Tell us where she is now!" Avet ran up and grabbed the agent by the arm and pulled him away with them help of the other agent.

"Calm down! That's enough!" Avet yelled. He walked up to Ryan as everyone helped him off of the floor. He wiped his lip that was now bleeding and looked at Avet.

"We can take you to her," Ryan said. "She is going to go save President Spencer."

"Spencer is dead!"

"No! She is not! We can do this all day. You want to know where Nikita is going, you are going to have to trust us. We can prove this information.

"How?" Avet asked. Ryan looked back at Birkhoff. Birkhoff stepped forward.

"The tablet I walked in with, yeah I'm going to need that back." Avet stared at them for a long time in disbelief. He looked back at the two agents standing behind him, one of them still looked like he wanted to run up and hit Ryan again. Avet looked back at Ryan.

"Alright…" he said. He looked back at the agent who seemed to have better composure. "Go get the tablet."

"B-but sir—"

"I said go get the tablet now." Without any more argument, the man walked out of the room and went to get the tablet. It was time to settle this once and for all.


	22. Setting the Plan in Motion

**NOTE: Hi everyone! So my updates may start getting a little slow, I'll try to keep for once or twice a week. Unfortunately, summer is over now...but I decided to post this although I did want to make it a little longer, I know you guys are waiting. I hope to keep getting reviews. Your feedback is much appreciated! I'm inching towards what you've been waiting for =) I'm still planning it out but I'll try to have something up again soon! **

Setting the Plan in Motion

Owen, with great resentment, had a talk with Amanda. He held up his end of the bargain. He had butterflied in his stomach as he tried to give her a broad and general idea of the situation. After Amanda was satisfied with all that Owen had to offer, she let him go. The same two German men took him back to his cell. Amanda escorted them.

When they made it back, Owen was put into his cell and Amanda walked up to Alex.

"Have you thought about our offer Alex?" Amanda asked. Alex frowned at Amanda and stood face to face with her.

"I will say it again. There is no way that I will ever work for you, Amanda."

"Fine. It is your loss. If you don't make it out of here alive...at least you know I offered.

"If you care Amanda, why not help us? Why work against us?"

"We have different goals and those goals clash. So here we are." She turned to Owen.

"Thank you for holding up your end Owen. Now we are even." Amanda left the room. Alex turned to Owen.

"Sam! Are you alright?"

"Owen, it's Owen now..." He chuckled. "Again I should say."

Alex looked at him with shock. _After all that time he spent making a point to be called Sam, now Owen is back?_

"What? How?"

"I finally understand who I am Alex." He said gripping the bars of his cell. "I've always been Owen. I have so much to tell you about-"

"Wait-did Amanda tell you everything? Did she put you in her chair?"

"Well, yes, but it was real. I remember..."

"She could have done something to you-"

"No, we had a deal." Alex frowned.

"What kind of deal?"

Sam tried to think of the best way to tell her. _No, no more lies._

"She told me that she would tell me who I am...in exchange for our plan." He watched as Alex's face twisted between shocked and anger.

"So you told her what we had talked about? How we are going to stop her. Sa-Owen, are you out of your mind?"

"I didn't tell her everything. I only told her that everyone was going to come here and try to help us escape. Alex, I had to know who I was...I had to."

Alex stood speechless. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. _Nikita...everyone they could be in danger._

"Alex..." He said almost pleadingly.

"I trusted you," she said. "If you are who you say you are, if you are on our side, our friend, then why do that?"

Sam felt a pang of guilt. Do now, think about the consequences later. He had always been that way. And as usual it was coming back to get him.

"I'm sorry." He didn't know what else to say to make it right or prove that he was being genuine. He already betrayed them all before. He didn't deserve their trust.

* * *

Avet handed Birkhoff his tablet and he sat at a conference table with the team and the two CIA agents. They needed a room with a projector. Birkhoff turned on his tablet and opened a video.

"This is proof that Spencer is alive. We'll let you watch and we'll explain later," Birkhoff said and sat down. Watching Amanda on the screen and seeing Spencer's pleading eyes reminded them of the pivotal point in their search for Amanda. They new they needed to act fast- it was now or never. Avet and the two agents watched in horror.

"Who is this woman?" Avet yelled practically jumping out of his seat.

"Her name is Amanda. She worked for Division," Michael told him.

"And what does she want with the president?"

"From what we can piece together," Ryan began, "she kidnapped the real president and replaced her with a replica. She then tried to frame Nikita by putting her in the same room as the fake Spencer when she committed suicide. It was a contingency. She knew that Nikita wouldn't pull the trigger, but she had agent Stirling give her a gun, which put her at the scene of the crime. This had to have taken...a lot of time to plan, sir."

"But it just sounds ridiculous. Why go through all of this to frame someone?"

"She's had it out for Nikita since Nikita escaped Division and it's become a never-ending grudge ever since Nikita was able to take over Division and get rid of it for good," Sonya said.

"This 'replica'...who was this person?" An agent asked.

"Basically, Amanda works for another secret international organization called the Shop which specializes in creating new limbs made out of real flesh and blood from a person's DNA. They use prostitutes as...test subjects. Amanda specializes in mind manipulation so they took advantage of a woman from Germany and brainwashed her…"

The three men looked stunned. Birkhoff was displaying pictures and documents on the screen as proof of what Ryan was saying.

"How was she able to get ahold to President Spencer without anyone noticing?" One of the agents asked.

"We are still trying to figure that out, but we think it may have been at the G20," Michael said.

Avet sat there speechless for a moment completely baffled by the situation. He suddenly let out a chuckle.

"This is amazing."

"This has been apart of our poor lives for years and we've been dealing with problems with Amanda even before the president's so called assassination. Imagine how we feel," Birkhoff said.

"Sir how would you like to proceed?" An agent asked. After a few seconds of thinking Aver threw his hands up and leaned back in his chair.

"I...don't know how to go about dealing with this. I mean, it's a complete disaster. Any of this get out to the public and we are taking about a complete riot."

The team looked at each other with smirks on their face.

"Am I missing something?" Avet asked.

"See the thing is Division was and still is a secret agency. We were trained underground and specialize in covert operations," Michael said as he stood up.  
Ryan stood up after him.

"What Michael is saying is we can get this done in a quiet way. The public doesn't have to know about it," Ryan told him. A big smile spread across Avet's face.  
"Then lets get started."

"But see the thing is, sir, we don't want things to be private. We'll handle the Amanda situation out of the public eye, but after we get president Spencer back, we are going public," Ryan said. Avet looked angry again.

"Not if I can help it."

"We were promised pardons by President Spencer back when we were in Division. But then she 'died' and derailed our plans of retiring at living on a beach somewhere…or my plans at least," Birkhoff added.

"And we would like those pardons back so we can live our lives the way we want now. We've been apart of this mess for years. It's time to end it," Sonya said standing next to Birkhoff.

"How is making this public going to help?" Avet asked.

"To the public, we don't exist. Division made sure of that so people wouldn't go looking for us," Michael said as Birkhoff put each of their profiles on the screen showing dates of death. "If we want our lives back we have to make ourselves and our situation known. No more secrets about us."

"If you go telling people about planned government assassinations that turned a blind eye to U.S law, it will cause a scandal," an agent said.

"We aren't looking to expose government secrets about kill missions. All of that evidence is destroyed. We just want to be known and not be on the run anymore," Ryan summed up. Avet cracked another smile.

"So you are basically setting up your retirement fund."

"We aren't looking for money. We just want to be able to live life and not hide who we are," Michael told them.

"But compensation for our dedication won't hurt," Birkhoff said under his breath. Avet looked up at all of them and began to chuckle again.

"I must say you all are very clever. So I can't do this without all of you? Well then," he sighed, "it's your operation. You tell us what you need and we can put our resources together to get his done." They all smiled. The agents looked shocked.

"These two are going to need access to computers, he is going to need a mobile com," Ryan said pointing to Michael. "And I need you to get together the biggest team you can."

"They are already on call. They are just waiting for my command."

"Perfect. Lets get this moving," Ryan said.

Once they were all set up, Ryan informed the soldiers of their targets and the people they needed to save, the President, Alex, Sam, and Nikita. They were on their way to strike. The match was being lit, a fire was about to begin, and there was no telling how they were going to stop it.


	23. Face to Face

**NOTE: Hey everyone, I know this is a short chapter, but I said that I would post at least once a week. Of course things have gotten busy so I haven't had time to write (sadly). I'm actually itching to write this now. I'm hoping to find time this week to post again. Thanks for waiting and reading. Please comment!**

Face to Face

Nikita made her way through the woods to the hidden facility that the signal from Alex's cell phone led them to. She examined the building for anyone guarding the perimeter but all was quiet. _Amanda is really trying to stay low-key. _She suddenly felt herself getting nervous. She always went on missions with a feeling of anxiety of the unknown. She knew that once she walked inside of the building that she was going to make herself completely vulnerable. She didn't even really have a plan, but she knew that she had to go in there and help Alex and Sam and even President Spencer. She took a deep breath and crept towards the building. She found a back door on the outside perimeter of the building and made a run for it. She pulled at it. _Locked. _She was going to make her way around the building to see if she could find another way in, but then she heard the door unlock from the inside. She paused for a minute and glance up wondering if there were cameras around. She knew there had to be cameras; Amanda was watching. She pulled out the gun that she took from the guard and held it in front of her as she opened the door. There was no one there. She stood there staring down a long empty corridor.

With her gun still ready, she made her way down the hall and towards another door. She felt an eerie silence. _Where's Amanda?_ She opened the door and it led to a hallway on her right and one straight ahead. She turned to her right and finally saw another door. She tried to open the heavy steal door but it was locked. She kept going until found another door. She pulled and this time the door opened.

* * *

"That took less time then expected. Well, she was always good with direction," Amanda smiled as she watched Nikita opened the door. Mr. Jones watched in confusion.

"Why are you leading her to where everyone is locked away? What if she gets them out?"

"She won't...because I'm on my way." Amanda got up from her seat and opened the door to see the same two German guards standing outside of the door.

* * *

Nikita peeked into the room and noticed how dark and damp it was. The room was large and seemed hollow like the rest of the building-no human presence. She walked farther into the room and noticed the large cages. She walked closer and saw a back leaning against the corner of the closest cage. She walked closer. That wasn't just anyone; it was Sam.

"Sam!" She yelled and ran up to him. He turned around and looked at her sleepily.

"Nikita?" He said and forced himself onto his feet.

"Are you oka-" she looked over when she heard another voice. She knew that voice anywhere. _Alex._ Alex was gripping the bars of the cage. Nikita ran over and touched her hand.

"I'm going to get you out of here."

"Nikita, you need to get out of here," Alex said.

"What? No, I'm not going to leave you here."

"Please...she knows. Amanda knows that you are here."

Nikita thought about the locked door that suddenly unlocked after she pulled it. She was being watched.

"Owen told her." Nikita looked over. _Owen?_

"Wait-Owen-but Sam-"

"No, it is Owen. I was always Owen. I just didn't know it. I'm so sorry Nikita. I had to find out who I was. Alex is right I told Amanda about our plans."

"Owen..." Nikita said hurt by his betrayal. She got back her friend, but all for a price. It was always for a price with Amanda.

"You need to get out-" Owen didn't have time to finish his sentence before the door opened. Amanda walked in with the two men. Nikita put her gun up and was stunned when she saw Amanda. She hadn't seen her since that day when Amanda gave her that unavoidable ultimatum.

"Amanda..." She watched Amanda stand there with the utmost composure. That's always how Amanda stood, but Nikita knew that Amanda was only hiding the train wreck inside of her.

"It's been a long time Nikita. Welcome," Amanda's smile sent shivers down Nikita's spine.

"You need to let them go, now!"

"You all were planning to ambush me. You really think I'm going to just let them go, just like that? You should know me better than that by now."

"Yes, you're right. I know that with you everything comes with a price."

"So, are you beginning to understand my lessons now?"

"Sorry, Amanda. I like to be an optimist and I believe in family."

"Such a shame," she shook her head. "I am still happy that you've made it. Everything will work out in my favor. You'll see. Now, I have President Spencer and the woman wanted for her supposed death."

Nikita turned around and finally noticed Spencer leaning against the bars of the cage. She stood there in shock. The memory of Spencer shooting herself in the head rushed back to her. Now, she knew the truth; it was Spencer, but a girl who happened to be unlucky enough to be caught in Amanda's web of lies and deception.

"How are you going to pitch that to the U.S. government. There has to be an explanation of how Spencer is still alive." Amanda smiled.

"You'll see how it all plays out," Amanda looked back at the two men. "Grab her."

As the two men walked towards Nikita, Nikita fired a shot at one man's shoulder. The man grunted and grabbed his arm. She took another shot at the second man but missed. He was quicker then she expected and was able to swat the gun out of her hand. It went flying across the room and he grabbed her arm. She tried to pull away, but her efforts were a waste. She punched him in the face with her other free hand and then tried to kick him in the groin but got him in the side of his thigh. It angered the tall, muscular German guard and he picked her up by her throat. Nikita grabbed at his thick, rough fingers grasping for air. Her feet dangled off of the ground and Alex and Sam couldn't do anything but watch. The man held her up in the air and Amanda's eyes widened.

"Let her go!" She yelled. The man dropped Nikita to the ground and then grabbed her arm making her get back to her feet. "I want you to bring her to my office not kill her. Let's go."

The man Nikita shot in the shoulder gave her a solid punch in the stomach with his good arm causing her to keel over as she tried to walk forward.

"Nikita!" Alex yelled. Her heart was racing. _I've got to get out of here…._

_ Alex…_Nikita thought as she heard Alex yell her name. She was scared now. She didn't know what Amanda had planned and now her and her friends were completely defenseless. She just hoped that Ryan, Michael, Birkhoff, and Sonya were following through with the plan. Everything rested on them now. She needed to know that she'd see Michael's face again. _Come on let's end this._


	24. Control

**NOTE: Okay everyone...I know you are probably frustrated with me, I am frustrated with everything that I have to devote my time to that keeps me from spending time writing. I really miss summer...I don't have a lot of time to do much nowadays but I managed to put this together. I am working on the next chapter. I wont get your hopes up and say that the next update will come soon, but I'll say that I'll try my hardest to write over the weekend. Anyway, thanks for reading and pushing me to write. Hope you enjoy!**

Control

The men dragged Nikita into Amanda's office and pushed her forward. She met eyes with Mr. Jones, who was sitting cross-legged with his hand under his chin.

"So, this is the famous Nikita," he said.

"I wouldn't say famous."

"Maybe I wouldn't have either if it weren't for the fact that you are the most wanted criminal in the United States."

"I guess I can thank Amanda for that."

"Correct. I'm sure you know now that it is all over. We will turn you in to the authorities and that'll be the end of this cat and mouse game we are playing."

"Who is the mouse?" Nikita asked slyly. A smirk formed on Mr. Jones face.

"I guess we can decide that once we see who comes out on top."

"We'll see," Nikita said returning the smirk.

"Strap her down in that chair," Amanda told the man holding Nikita while pointing at a chair against the wall and across from Mr. Jones. The two German men nodded at each other and the one Nikita shot left the room. The man still had blood coming from his wound.

The man strapped Nikita down and left the room.

The phone in the office began ringing and the flat screen television flickered on. Amanda walked over and answered the call.

"Yes."

"Amanda is Jones there with you?" A voice was heard from the television. It was a man's voice, but only an outline of the man's face could be seen.

"There has been a change of plans," Amanda turned to Jones.

"What do you mean?"

"I received some information from Owen. Apparently, Nikita's other...friends are in the process of planning a strike on this facility." Nikita's heart dropped. _Owen_. _He did tell her…_

_ "_How did they even find the facility? We put it in the location for that specific purpose so that it couldn't be found." The voice began to sound irritated.

"It is not going to be a problem because we are going to give Nikita to the police."

"And how are you going to explain your facility? And the fact that President Spencer is alive? You cannot turn Nikita over to the police. She's going to talk."

"They won't believe her."

"You aren't sure of that Amanda. They could investigate and come looking for us," Jones said.

"Clearly I have given you too much power over the situation. You have dug yourself into a hole. You should have gotten rid of Nikita and her friends when you had the chance to."

"I can handle the situation—"

"No, I have had enough of you. Jones you are in charge of making sure Spencer is transported to another facility, Allen remains president, and the police only find Nikita. I want you to evacuate. That way when they find Nikita, they will realized that their time was wasted and nothing is to be found. Understood?"

"Yes, sir."

"What about our deal? I want to have control of Division—"

"Oh, that reminds me, Nikita was supposed to be killed. If she had been killed before, we wouldn't have to deal with this mess. As far as I am concerned, you have not kept your end of the bargain. You just added unnecessary complications. As of right now, we are not creating your facility. I'll reconsider after we handle this situation."

"Our plan—"

"This discussion is over. Get it done." The TV shut off. Amanda stood there with her back turned away from Nikita and Jones. She slowly turned walked over to her desk and sat down.

"We are proceeding as planned." Amanda said to Jones.

"What?

"We are going through with our original plans." Jones scoffed.

"You are just going to ignore your superior? You made a deal with the Shop. If you go against our decisions you are putting yourself at risk—"

"Listen, I was promised something, something that I want more than anything. No one is getting in the way of that. You are either with me or against me."

"You have been doing a lot without even speaking with me. There is no reason for me to help you. I am evacuating this facility. I should burn it down." Jones stood up and turned to walk out of the door. Amanda stood up with a 9mm in her hand. She aimed it at Jones's head and shot him point blank at his right temple. He collapsed to the ground. Nikita gasped and would have jumped out of her chair had she not been in retraints. _What the hell? _Nikita looked at Amanda in shock.

"No one is going to get in my way. Not anymore."

"Amanda you can't kill your way to what you want."

"But I have to. I didn't do what I should have before to keep Division. I should have killed Percy and Birkhoff and Michael…and you. Just like my father and my sister…"

"No, you're wrong. You can end this right now. You can stop this. It isn't right Amanda. You can't win now. You are going to have the Shop after you, the U.S. government. It is too late to make another Division." Amanda stood in front of Nikita. "We can end this together." Amanda chuckled.

"Stop putting up the act, Nikita. You know your not getting out of this one. I know what you are thinking, Michael and your friends and going to come bursting in here and rescue you, but I've already planned everything out. You managed to get away from me last time, but this time it is not going to happen. You are going to get what you deserve."

"And what is that, Amanda? I've spent so much time trying to take you and Percy down. Trying to take down Division and get everyone out so that they can live their lives. What makes you think I'm at fault? I'm not the villain."

"Nikita you are not innocent. You and everyone else in Division got there for a reason. Jail was the punishment. Division was an opportunity, a chance for all of those people rotting away in jail to make use of something they had no problem with doing, killing."

"Regardless of what any of us have done, we should not be forced to kill."

"Well, no one had a problem with doing it before coming to Division."

"That's different."

"How?"

"I didn't want to kill that cop!" Nikita thought back to when she shot the detective who shot Sammy.

"But you did."

"I did it because he hurt someone that I loved."

"Is that your excuse?"

"It is my explanation. I was on drugs. If I were clean…"

"None of it would have happened. Well, you weren't clean. In fact, I was the one who helped you not only rehabilitate, but I gave you purpose. I showed you who you could be. Division was your blessing Nikita."

"No," she shook her head.

"Admit it." Nikita looked Amanda in the eyes.

"And what was Division to you? Was it your blessing?" Amanda didn't say anything. "It is just your crutch—your way of feeling like you are in control."

"I was controlled my whole life. My father controlled me…Percy. I never had anything of my own."

"No, you haven't. Your father shouldn't have done those horrible things to you. What he did was unforgivable. And Percy—he was a narcissistic tyrant, but you have a chance to be something better. Better than your father and him." Amanda stood there staring at Nikita.

"We are almost there," Michael said into his earpiece to Birkhoff.

"Put your game face on, you are about to go into the battleground. I'm sure Amanda is waiting for you if Nikita has already made it to the lair," Birkhoff told him.

"We're getting Nikita out of there. Alex and Sam and President Spencer too. Let's stay focused guys." Michael said while sitting in the back of a large van with the marines.

"Good luck," Sonya said into the headset. The van stopped and Michael got ready to get out of the van. The men all ran out. Michael was getting ready to follow behind when one of the men pushed him back.

"You can stay here. It is too dangerous."

"W-what?" He scoffed. "I'm going in there. I am trained to do this."

"No, we are going to go in and do everything. You stand on guard."

"That was not the plan. The plan was to—"

"Stand down!" The man yelled and left the van. Michael stood there bewildered.

Birkhoff looked up at Avet who stood over them at the computer.

"What is going on? Why isn't Michael going in?"

"We have orders not to let anyone else into the building. They have four people to rescue—"

"Let him in or I won't lead this mission. We held up or end." Avet sighed and bent over to talk into the microphone.

"Let Michael enter the facility, but you are not responsible for him. Focus on the targets." Birkhoff wasn't satisfied with that but he let it go. He'd have Mikey's back.

"Let's end this Amanda…" Amanda stood there with the gun hanging from her fingertips. She had tears in her eyes. Nikita knew that she was giving in. Then, they heard a loud but distant explosion. Amanda turned on the television showing all of the security camera footage. Soldiers were entering through the back entrance of the building. Amanda turned to Nikita and began untying the restraints.

"Let's go get Alex and Sa—" Amanda smacked Nikita across the face with her gun.

"Shut up." She made Nikita stand up and held the gun to her side. "Walk."


	25. Worst Enemy

**NOTE: Yay! Here is the next chapter. hope you like it! Let me know what you think =) **

Worst Enemy

Amanda gripped Nikita's arm as she pushed her through the doorway and out into the corridor. She had a gun in her right hand pointed in front of her as she scanned the area.

"What are you going to do?" Nikita asked. "They have the place surrounded. They'll-"

"Shut up," Amanda said and pushed her forward to make her walk faster.

Amanda scanned the next corridor and held her gun in front of her before stepping out. They finally made it to the room that Nikita had been to hours earlier, the room that held her two friends and the woman who had a dramatic effect on her life. Was she going to get them out? Nikita had no once of understanding. Amanda must have something up her sleeve...maybe she is going to put me in here with everyone else. She couldn't do anything but wait to find out as Amanda unlocked the doors to the dark room.

Michael walked through the large facility with a machine gun planted in front of him. It moved with him as her searched the large but empty space. What the hell does Amanda have here? It wasn't like Amanda to be plain. Everything with her was elaborate and complicated. _Everything._ _Nikita where are you_? He found his way through the maze to a door that stuck out to him. It had two large, wooden office doors. Amanda. He readied his gun and took a deep breath before kicking the door in. He didn't think that it would budge, but it did. In fact, it wasn't even locked. He looked in and saw an office with computers, desks, and a dead man lying on their floor. He was lying face up lodged between one of the desks and a couch chair. Michael bent down and touched the man's neck for a pulse. There was none. He looked around the room for any signs of Amanda or Nikita. He glanced behind him and saw the chair that had hand cuffs still linked to both the arms and legs of the chair. _She has Nikita._ His heart began to palpitate as he looked around the room trying to find anything that might put him in the right direction.

He noticed the TV screen mounted on the wall of the room. It showed six camera views. One showed the soldiers guarding the door outside of the building. She knows. He looked at other views and saw Amanda pushing Nikita down one of the corridors. He became anxious again, bur frustrated. That could be anywhere in the building. He walked over to the computer at the desk and changed the camera view until he found what he was looking for, Amanda dragging Nikita into a dark room. His heart began to beat faster and it almost pained him that he was not in Division. He knew the ins and outs of that dungeon and would have been able to find them immediately. Now, he had to figure out a plan.

"Birkhoff!" He called into his earpiece.

"Hey Mikey." He mumbled. "Sorry I haven't been walking you through. Avet has been breathing down my neck. He finally stepped out the car."

"I need you to help me get to the room that Amanda has Nikita in."

"I'd love to, but I don't have the floor plans of her secret jail..."  
Michael sat there frustrated. _What can I do?_ _What did they do in Division?_ They always had floor plans before going on their missions but that's because these places actually existed. A gala, a restaurant, an abandoned warehouse, a street... Then it hit him; they still knew where all of the Shop facilities were located. This technically was a Shop facility even before Amanda came along. It was possible that this location was on the map.

"Birkhoff do you think you could gain access into your own system back at the safe house?"

"Are you really asking me that? I know I'm on a computer right now that's not even up to par, but don't doubt my skills my friend..."

"So you can. I need you to do that right now. This facility should be on the list of shop facilities."

"You want me to hack myself? It's like self inflicting-"

"Birkhoff!"

"On it," Birkhoff answered. Michael loved his friend and his funny antics, but when it came to Nikita he cut straight to the chase. He had to find her and get her out of this mess once and for all.

* * *

Amanda pushed Nikita into the room where Alex and Sam lay exhausted on the floors of their cages. She realized she was free and a good enough distance away from Amanda to dodge a bullet. She turned around with a hunger for revenge in her eyes all too evident for Amanda to see. Amanda held up her gun.

"Ah-ah not so fast." Nikita knew that Amanda's mind was set on getting out of this situation and leaving her to the wolves, but she also knew that deep down Amanda had a soft spot. She had a soft spot for all of them but didn't want to admit it.

"You going to shoot me, Amanda?"

"I've done it before. Too bad you had a vest on."

"And you knew it."

"...you're right. And I know you have one on now. So if I shoot you now, it'll be somewhere that hurts." Nikita searched Amanda's eyes and saw as much fear and doubt as determination.

"...fine. Fine." Nikita put her hands up and got down on her knees. She watched the anger in Amanda's eyes subside to obligatory triumph. Nikita wasn't putting up a fight anymore, so Amanda would have to accept her power. She'd have to take control and decide what she wanted to do with Nikita. Her eyes widened and she paused before wearily stepping towards Nikita still pointing her gun. Nikita tugged at the back of her right leg discreetly. She had a knife tucked away in her leg, always. If Amanda got close enough, she could slit Amanda right in the throat…only if necessary. Amanda stepped closer and closer until Nikita was able to look directly into the barrel of the gun. Amanda towered over her, but her victory didn't seem to feel like a victory. She stood there staring at the woman that she invested so much time into. The woman she had planned out a future for, in a jail cell for the rest of her life. After everything, she still struggled to pull the trigger.

"What are you waiting for?" Nikita asked. Amanda's eyes began to tear up. She bit her lip and then pressed them tightly together.

"No!" A loud scream could be heard from the cage. Nikita didn't turn around. She knew it was from Alex. Amanda turned to see Alex pressed against the cage gripping it to support her wear body. "Amanda."

Nikita took the chance to lunge at Amanda. She pulled the knife out, slit Amanda's arm and caused her to drop the gun with a gasp. She looked at her arm in shock and Nikita took a swing at her. She caught Amanda in the side of her face causing her to stumble backwards. Amanda began to fight back punching and kicking, but not nearly making as many solid shots as Nikita. She knew she was no match for Nikita so she began using her surroundings. She picked up a piece of moldy abandoned plywood off the ground and swung at Nikita's face. The first time she missed, but she was able to hit the side of Nikita's arm and back with it. She dropped the wood when Nikita backed away and ran across the room. The room was dim so Nikita couldn't figure out where Amanda went. It was suddenly eerily quiet. Nikita stood waiting for Amanda to reveal herself.

"Nikita! You've got to get out of here!" Alex yelled.

"I'm done running. Come on, Amanda! Let's finish this!" She waited until she heard a creaking sound come from the corner of the room.

"She's over here!" Alex yelled. Amanda reappeared standing across from Nikita clutching her wrist.

"Done hiding?" Nikita asked. Amanda only gave her sly smile. President Spencer appeared gasping as if she hadn't been able to breathe inside the cage and stood next to Amanda.

"Ms. President—I'll get you out of here." Spencer looked scared and flustered. Then, something changed.

"_Attaque-la, attaque-la,_ _Nikita,_" Amanda said in French. _What? "Fight her?" _Suddenly, the expression on Spencer's face turned evil. Her fists balled and her head lowered.

"President Spencer—" Nikita started, but before she could finish her sentence, the president was charging at her.


	26. Relentless Enemy

**NOTE: Can you all believe it?! I have updated again! This is the fastest one in a while haha Thanks so much for the feedback on the last chapter. I'm satisfied with this chapter and it was fun to write. It's do or die now for the team. Let me know what you think! **

Relentless Enemy

"Did you find it?" Michael asked anxiously.

"...ha! Here it is. Good thinking Mikey. And...got the floor plans right here. Downloading and connecting to the system…Alright, we are ready to go. Time to go get Cruella."

"Thanks Birkhoff. Lead the way." As Birkhoff gave directions, Michael ran down the corridors panting to catch his breath. He knew Nikita was in trouble; he felt it as adrenaline pumped through his body and beads of sweat formed on his forehead. _I'm coming_.

* * *

Alex watched in horror trying to figure a way out of her cage. She remembered her knife when Nikita cut Amanda's wrist. _Always prepared…and she prepared me_. Alex wasn't sure how good it would work but she began cutting across the rusted chain that kept her from helping the one woman that she could put all of her faith in. She couldn't sit there and do nothing while Amanda threatened to take her life away. With all determination, she cut as if she were using a saw, faster and harder, not caring that the rusted chain cut her back.

Nikita quickly dodged Spencer's attack. Spencer stopped and turned around to grab Nikita but Nikita once again avoided her. _Maybe if I keep this up she will get tired._ Nikita dodged punches and kicks trying her best not to hurt the President of the Untied States. She didn't need Spencer's real blood on her hands.

Amanda stood in the corner of the room disappointed that Spencer couldn't keep up. She looked for her gun and remembered that it was on the floor. Her wrist was still bleeding, but she felt confident that she could still shoot with her left hand. She cautiously walked passed Spencer and Nikita trying to avoid being caught in the battle and smiled when she got ahold of the gun. She picked it up and made sure she had a good grip on it. She weighed it in her hand before aiming it at Nikita.

Alex finally cut through the chain and was able to kick the door open. When she looked up she saw Amanda holding up a gun pointed right at Nikita.

"No! Nikita!" Alex shouted trying to run up to her targeted friend. Nikita turned around to look at Alex before turning to look for Amanda. After letting her guard down, Spencer punched her across the right side of her face as a bullet pierced through the soft flesh on the left side of her stomach.

Michael busted through the doors and when he heard Alex's piercing scream fused into the piercing sound of a gunshot. He watched as Nikita fell towards Owen's cage almost hitting the front of the cage with her head after being hit and shot simultaneously. The side of her head hit the concrete floor and, afterwards, she was silent.

"Nikita!" Michael yelled and ran over to her. Before Amanda could aim her gun at Michael, Alex ran over and smacked it out of her hand. She punched Amanda in the face and watched her fall to the ground.

President Spencer fell to her knees clutching her head. She had an immediate headache. All the sounds around her were loud and overwhelming. She tried to balance herself pushing herself back up with her right hand, but in vain.

"Damn it!" Alex yelled in frustration that she couldn't get to Nikita before Amanda shot her gun. She punched Amanda across the face again. "Where are your keys!" She searched Amanda's pockets. She found a ring of keys and grabbed them. Amanda punched Alex back and plied her way off of the ground. She ran out of the room. Alex hesitated wanting to run after her, but instead she rushed over to let Owen out of his cage and they both ran to Nikita's side.

"Is she okay?" Owen asked.

"The bullet went out through her back, but she is losing a lot of blood," Michael said as he pulled off his leather jacket and pulled off his T-shirt, ripping it up to wrap around her body and put pressure on her wound.

She lay there going in and out of consciousness.

"Hang in there Nikita," Alex said.

"Nikita I need you to stay with me. We need to get out of here," Michael said. Nikita's eyes opened at the sound of his voice. She blinked trying to focus her vision. When she saw him she gave a faint smile.

"Mich..."

"Shh..." He picked her up gently. "Come on." He signaled to Alex and Owen.

"Wait-" Alex remembered the president. She walked up to her ready to defend herself from any attacks but she only saw a confused woman holding her head.

"What is going on?" Spencer asked. Alex knew. She knew exactly what was going on. Spencer was put in the same situation Alex had been in before when she betrayed her friends, the people she loved. Amanda had her brainwashed to believe it necessary to hurt Nikita. Amanda was relentless; she hurt anyone as long as it advanced her plot. No matter the consequences. Alex helped President Spencer to her feet.

"Let's go," she said to everyone.

As they ran to the door, Amanda reappeared. She was holding a canister in her hand and sprinkled the last bit of liquid it held in front of the door.  
The pungent smell of gasoline immediately hit them-they knew what she was about to do.  
"I've been waiting...so long for this," Amanda breathed.

"Amanda…" Alex mumbled as she stood in horror of what she knew Amanda was about to do. Before anyone could react, Amanda pointed her gun at the ground and shot staring watery-eyed at Nikita who watched through hazy vision as the woman who she thought she could change only proved to be evil and heartless. _The Fire_, Nikita thought. _This is how it all began_…Amanda once said to her.

Flames roared as they spread down the corridor. Amanda stood staring at them on the other side of the flames before walking away.

"No…" Nikita said. "You can't let her get away—" Nikita struggled to get out of Michael's grip and get her feet on the ground.

"Nikita-" before he could stop her, she was already on her feet struggling to hold herself up with a hole in her stomach. She stared at the flames that trapped them in the room. Flash backs of being in Amanda's childhood home flooded back to her. She heard a girl scream and she visualized Amanda in the basement. She shook her head to make it go away. She turned back to look at everyone.

"We have to go through the flames," she said.

"What?" Owen scoffed. "That's insane."

"She's right, there's no other way out—Birkhoff I need you to guide us through the building so we can get back outside. Amanda lit a fire."

"What! I'll tell Avet to get the soldiers out. Head down the northern corridor and then make a left." Michael nodded forward.

"Wait—" Alex ran to the corner of the room where she remembered seeing plywood. She grabbed a piece and handed it to Owen. They each held on in their hands and put the pieces down at the same time. The wood was able to smother the fire in just enough time for them to walk through. They ran down the hall and went in the direction Birkhoff told them. They made a left turn and stopped to wait for Birkhoff's next instruction.

"Birkhoff—" Michael called to him. He didn't get a quick response and panicked. "He's not answering…lets just keep moving. The fire is going to spread." They all agreed and began to run down the corridor. Nikita began to run but was grabbed from behind with a strong hand clutched over her mouth. She was picked up and turned around only to face Amanda holding a gun up once more.

"Let her go." One of the German guards that had been responding to all of Amanda's orders put Nikita down. "Go after the rest of them." Without a word, the man ran down the hall. "Do not even try to escape…you're helpless." Nikita grunted at the pain in her side irritated after being grabbed.

"You won't…get away with this…" Nikita managed to say as sweat streamed down the sides of her face. Amanda grabbed her by the arm and pointed a gun at her back as she led her down the hall.


End file.
